Dave Hobrecht, World-Renowned Black & White Sports Artist

Dave Hobrecht is a sports enthusiast whose life was changed at age 13 when he was hit by a car. Upon waking up in a hospital bed two weeks later, Hobrecht learned he would no longer have the opportunity to fulfill his dreams as an athlete. With both legs shattered and doctors telling him he may never walk again, he chose instead to refocus his efforts toward documenting sports through art.

Over the next 18 months, Hobrecht learned that his breaks from physical therapy empowered him to create for himself a new life on canvas. He sketched image after image from his favorite sports magazines, baseball cards, books, and newspapers. Ultimately, after coming home to his family and friends, it became apparent that this young artist had found a new way to participate in the sports he loved so much growing up.

Later, Hobrecht graduated from the prestigious Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California, and after several years working in his family's business, he began to focus solely on his professional art career.

Charcoal and Pastel Paintings

Hobrecht is well-known for his classic, yet innovative, black and white sports paintings. Hobrecht uses his masterful technique, unique dry brush application method, and signature charcoal and pastel medium that he personally developed to give his art an astonishing level of realism that is unparalleled in the world of sports art.

Hobrecht’s detailed black and white paintings give his images a sense of timelessness - a brief moment of sporting achievement captured forever in charcoal and pastel. The angles and composition allow viewers to experience that spectacular moment once again and relive the exhilaration with each glance. 

Hobrecht's "Game-Used" Art Tradition

The concept behind Hobrecht's "Game-Used" art is to take pieces of relics, used during a game, and incorporate them directly into the canvas of his paintings. Hobrecht painted "Game Used" original portraits for dozens of baseball Hall of Famers, adding authentic, game-used infield dirt from historic ballparks in the cities where the legends played. By blending the infield dirt with his proprietary charcoal/pastel dust, Hobrecht creates a warm, rich, and bright sepia quality in each painting.

For "The All-Time" series, Hobrecht again plans to incorporate game-used elements directly into the original pieces. There will be infield dirt and grass from Dodger Stadium, swatches of game-worn uniforms, and shavings from game-used baseballs, gloves, and bats. Some paintings will even contain architectural relics from different historic stadiums!

Roster of Hall of Fame Athletes

Dave Hobrecht has provided stunning original art for: Topps baseball cards; Steiner Sports (Derek Jeter & Mariano Rivera); Cal Ripken, Jr.; Rollie Fingers; Willie Mays; Floyd Mayweather; Deacon Jones Foundation with the NFL; Oscar De La Hoya; Barry Larkin; John Elway; Tony Hawk; University of Southern California; UCLA (Bill Walton); University of Texas (Earl Campbell); Louisiana State University (Shaquille O’Neal, Pete Maravich, and Billy Cannon); and more.

Hobrecht at Home

Even more satisfying, this Laguna Beach, CA artist is proud to have overcome his prognosis of never being able to walk again by spending his spare time at the beach with his wife and four children.

(Click the logo to check out Dave's website, Hobrecht.com)