Art & Pickle

Amidst the ocean of pickleball medal winner photographs floating out in the world, there exists a wild array of colourful, playful, informative and fun pickleball art that has and is being created. These include eye-catching graphics, imaginative videos, striking logos, catchy songs, vibrant music videos, and vividly-coloured wall murals and hitting walls.

Interestingly this art aspect of pickleball all began in 1968, when the three founders (Barney McCallum, Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell) formed “Pickle-Ball, Inc.,” the first company to manufacture and market pickleball paddles, wooden paddles designed by Barney. By the 1980s, the paddles were shipped in a container along with a net and a couple balls giving purchasers all they needed to play the game. The art work for the shipping boxes is an early example of pickleball art. The box had reproduced photo images of Barney’s extended family playing pickleball. The photos created the sense that pickleball was full of action and fun, and everything that one needed to also have pickleball fun was in the box. More than art though, the sentence on the front of the box, "Keen competition at all levels of ability,” proclaimed Barney’s philosophy for the game: Pickleball play is competitive and for all levels. After many years and millions of hits later, that philosophy still holds true. (vimeo.com/1096698754)

Pickleball Art

Graphics: Logos, illustrations, cartoons

Photography: Pickleball actions shots, portraits, advertising, docos, promos.

Audio: Sound effects, music, books, podcasts.

Video: Coaching, advertising, music videos and video podcasts

Painting: From kids pickleball books to large hitting wall murals.

In the early days (1965 -2000) pickleball art was mostly found on t-shirts and logos for clubs and communities. Most of the artwork at that time depicted images of paddles, pickleballs or pickles. Today, pickleball art ranges far and wide in scope and appeal. 

In 2020, a pickleball music video shot and edited during covid times had a cast of top pickleball players, coaches and friends making an effort to brighten the dark and solitary Covid years 2019/20. The video showcased the pickleball community's creativity and sense of fun. 

Podcasting is now everywhere and includes pickleball. The very first pickleball podcast produced in Australia was “The Pickleball Podcast” hosted by Australians Jade, Krivo, and Coach Tony. The trio offered weekly shows for pickleball enthusiasts and newcomers and the shows ran from February 2021 to September 2023. 

Pickleball art has evolved over the last 50 years, keeping pace with the increasing numbers of players taking up the game. In the last few years, large hitting wall paintings have been created across Australia. One example is by artist Jandamarra Cadd (jandamarracadd.com) who recreated the story of tennis great Evonne Goolagong-Crawley in artwork on the hitting wall overlooking a pickleball court at the Noosa Tennis Center, Noosa Heads, Queensland. Jandamarra explained his hitting wall art was intended to be part of an effort to unite and inspire people from many different cultures.

The Noosa Leisure Center in Noosaville, Queensland has an outside wall at the NLC dedicated to pickleball. It was transformed into a pickleball hitting wall by being painted to portray a court, ball placements and paddles in a colourful and 'let’s play pickleball' spirit. The artist was Joel Fergie (thezoonkeeperart.com). Joel had never heard of pickleball before painting the wall, so was given a brief pickleball lesson and had a hit before beginning the work. Joel was asked afterword what word he would use to describe pickleball. His reply: “Quirky”. 

We raise our pickleball hats to that...