USTA Magazine May 2000 Tennis Illustration 2000

This Tennis Illustration by Jack Davis was made for USTA Magazine in May 2000, using what looks like watercolor and ink. Davis’ mark-making is just so alive – scratchy lines and juicy color give it this sense of instantaneity, like he’s channeling energy right onto the page. Look at the pink background; it’s not just a flat wash, it’s got all these blooms and bleeds, little accidents that give it depth and vibration. Then he layers in the figures, these wild, cartoonish bodies all flailing and lunging, and each with a slightly different expression or costume. Take the guy in the wheelchair at the bottom left - the intensity on his face is palpable. Davis’ work reminds me a bit of Philip Guston’s late paintings, that same kind of freewheeling spirit. Neither of them were afraid to be messy, or funny, or a little bit ugly. It’s like they’re saying, hey, life is chaotic, art should be too.