Eighty drawings by Ernest Pignon-Ernest give us a fascinating survey of Olympic history via the portraits of 30 exceptional athletes, whose quest for gold pushed the boundaries of sport.

Recently inducted into the Académie des Beaux-Arts, Ernest Pignon-Ernest is a renowned French artist, urban art pioneer and precursor of what today is generally referred to as the ‘street art’ movement. Commenting on his work in an interview with Art Press, he said: “I don’t make artwork in situations, I make artwork out of situations.”

Pignon-Ernest has teamed up with Pierre-Louis Basse, a prolific author, veteran Europe 1 journalist, and avid sports fan, whose work as a writer and radio commentator approaches sports through the lens of culture.

Together, the two men give us a unique celebration of more than 30 Olympic athletes whose glittering achievements have gone down in history. Among the impressive host of champions are Jesse Owens, Teddy Riner, Emil Zatopek, Richard Fosbury, Colette Besson, Nadia Comaneci, Mark Spitz, Valeriy Borzov, and Cassius Clay.

This beautiful edition of virtuoso drawings by Pignon-Ernest with written contributions by Basse is truly one of a kind: sports drawings are unprecedented in Pignon-Ernest’s body of work, aside from a poster commissioned for the French Open. Iconic sports moments told in pictures and, even better, in 1000 words!