As Baseball Season Starts, Artist Who Paints Games Live Worldwide Visits NY: 'Every Stadium Tells A Story'

NEW YORK — Just in time for the start of the revered baseball season across the United States, an artist who's spent a lifetime capturing some of the sport's most meaningful moments and players paid a visit to the North Fork.

Andy Brown is an international live sports artist, who has traveled the world and visited scores of stadiums, memorializing some of the greatest moments in sports history through his artwork, created on the spot.

Speaking with Patch, Brown — who was in the United States to donate one of his works to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY — said he had recently joined his longtime friend Howard Waldman, owner of the Jamesport County Store, for a reunion marked by stories and memories.

Brown had recently been seen in Houston, bringing his talents as Great Britain Baseball — for whom he's the team artist — participated in the World Baseball Classic.

From his earliest days, Brown said he's found joy in art. Born in Aylesbury, in Buckinghamshire, England, Brown said he's been painting and drawing all his life.

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"One of my earliest drawings, it was 1986, and it was of a guy batting, a baseball player," he said. "And at that age, I would never have seen baseball — we don't have much baseball in the UK, although it's growing lately. But at that age, in 1986, I wouldn't have seen baseball anywhere."

Brown said he found inspiration in a comic book, where he saw larger-than-life players with bats that captured his imagination.

"My mum has still got that drawing in a frame, back at the house," he said.

Growing up, he said, "I just drew all the time."

He studied painting at Loughborough, Brown said.

A teacher for 15 years, he taught for 10 in South Korea. "And that's where I discovered baseball —and started painting baseball. That led me to 20 different ballparks and more than 140 ball parks," he said.

Although he also does commissions for those who want to immortalize their favorite ballparks, much of Brown's work is done live at the stadium, the crack of the baseball echoing through the stands, the scent of popcorn and hot dogs and sunshine coloring his impressions and reflections.

"A lot of the time, it's live at the stadium, during the nine innings, getting it all down on canvas," he said.

Of the experience, Brown said: "It's amazing. It's so much fun, the atmosphere. I love it all — the music, the food, the smell of it all. So many people there are celebrating. And" — when their team isn't winning — "commiserating. It's got all the drama of life playing out in a baseball stadium. You can see a lot about the culture — who we are and how we like to live and the people we admire — all sorts of things come through in the baseball game."

With a veritable treasure trove of memories, Brown said there are some even more extraordinary moments, meeting players he's long admired.

"One of the big ones was being David Ortiz," he said.

Ortiz is a Dominican-American former professional baseball designated hitter who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1997 to 2016, mainly for the Boston Red Sox.

"I made a book down in the Dominican Republic, and while making the book, I was asked to go and paint a portrait of David Ortiz, because he'd just been elected to the Hall of Fame, so it was big news in the country — and then to be invited along to go and make a portrait of him was incredible."

Ortiz, he said, "was such a nice guy, and so grateful for what I'd done. He appreciated it — and I find that with a lot of the players."

The admiration between Brown and the players is decidedly mutual, he said. "I admire what they do. I admire the commitment and the craft and the hard work and the sacrifice they have to go through, to put their bodies on the line — to play the game they love. I really admire that — and then, when they see what I do when they and appreciate it, you know, that's really the cherry on top. It's quite amazing."

Reflecting on the Baseball Hall of Fame, Brown said he'd been in Houston at the World Baseball Classic, and someone suggested one of his paintings "should go to Cooperstown," he said. "They asked me to donate the painting of Great Britain versus Mexico, our first game there at Daikin Park in Houston, Texas — they want to take it up there at Cooperstown. It's an incredible honor," he said. "I'm delighted to have the Great Britain baseball story, painted by an English guy — the American sport, the national pastime — on the walls of the Hall of Fame. It's pretty neat."

First, Brown stopped on the North Fork, where he had the painting framed, and then he headed up to Cooperstown the following Monday.

While there, he painted "two new masterpieces," according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

And, of his Cooperstown honor, he said: "It was pretty amazing. It was incredible to meet Josh Rawitch president of the Hall of Fame. To go to his office and present the painting of Great Britain versus Mexico, that was just an honor. It felt like a culmination of decades of work."

And, he said: "To have a piece of artwork that represents Great Britain in the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in the United States is of a pretty special."

The Great Britain baseball program, he said, has long supported his work, regarding him as a member of the team, a relationship of mutual respect and love, he said. "It was incredibly special," he said. "I was very pleased that this was the piece that was there."

While in Cooperstown, despite the cold temperatures, Brown also created a painting depicting the exterior of the Hall of Fame.

"I wanted to capture that iconic front, where all the greats of stood and walked through the doors, as well as all the families and fans — and will, for generations to come," he said.

And, he added, he also painted inside, in the gallery of plaques, painting all the Hall of Fame plaques, "a great honor and privilege," he said.

The visit wasn't Brown's first to the Hall of Fame. "I went in 2019," he said. " Because I painted all 30 of the Major League Ballparks that year. And at the end of my tour, I zigzagged my way across America. My final finishing point was Cooperstown," he said."It's exciting to get back there and present one of my paintings."

Although much of his work is available for purchase on Instagram and on his website, some works ae commissioned, and prints are available.

Taking home the memories means everything for those whose lives are marked by shared experiences — moments of fierce joy, happy laughter, and so much love — at ballparks.

The magic isn't just found in the game being played on the field, he said.

"It's the game on the field, but it's also the people in the stands, they're so important .You might get a little boy who's catching foul balls. If he comes up and and has a word, then I might put him in the painting with his foul ball. There are generations of families in the paintings — and, you know, hot dog sellers and everybody who wanders around the ballpark and has a good time, they all make it into the painting."

Through his work, Brown is able to capture the unity found on the baseball canvas, in stadiums the world over.

"Especially in this day and age, I feel like — you know, the paintings are all all about sport, and we all support different teams —but we all love the game. And I think that's what it's all about."

He added: "It's all about the collective love for the game, our collective love for humanity, the collective sense of belonging. Getting together and discussing life and looking at life and the highs and the lows — it's all there in a baseball game. It's a really beautiful metaphor for everything else around us."

Speaking of Waldman, Brown — who painted a portrait of his friend during his recent visit— said the pair has been friends for years, close to the whole family.

"Every time I get to the States, I always want to come to the North Fork because I love it. It's such a beautiful place."

He added: "I've traveled all around the world painting baseball and painting in general, but the North Fork is one of the most special places on my radar; it's a place that I always want to get to. And I want to come here and eat the baked ziti. I want to get down to the beaches. I want to go down to Greenport and have a wander around the shops there. I just love being the atmosphere, the people. I find everyone here so friendly and so generous that I love being here."

Waldman's store, he said, is a "real icon of the North Fork," one he's painted over the years, the wares an inspiration. "It's like the Statue of Liberty of Jamesport."

Waldman said, of Brown: "He's just a fine person — fun to be around and very interesting."

Like so many artists who've found themselves enchanted by the East End's singular light, Brown said he's been similarly drawn back, time and time again.

"You can be in the city, and then within not too long, you can be in a very, very different part of the world, with a very different feel. It's got the right nice rural atmosphere, but the community spirit and then the beach life — so many special aspects and beautiful landscapes. And the light is fantastic. The sunsets are amazing over the Sound. It's beautiful being here, and capturing that on the canvas."

When asked where he lives during the times when he's not traversing the world and following his passion, Brown said: "It's tricky to say. I travel a lot; I'm so transient. But these days I live on a canal boat on the Grand Union Canal off of England. They were built for the Industrial Revolution, to cruise up and down and down the waterways there. So I bought this 65-foot long — and it's about eight feet wide — canal boat. It's a very long, thin machine. It's really fantastic."

With a grand slam of accolades already accomplished, Brown said he never tires of the quest.

"I just want to get to the next stadium," he said. "I just want to capture more."

Over the years, he said: "I've been so many great places. I've met so many great people. Every stadium tells a story."

Every game is different; every person has a unique viewpoint, he said. "I feel like the work's never done. You've got to keep going — you've got to keep the wheel spinning and get on to the next place."

As well as the United States, where baseball means everything, for so many, there are other countries where Brown has found the sport captivates.

"I love my time painting in Latin America," he said. "I've been around Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Nicaragua, Panama. I feel like, especially the fans in the Dominican Republic — you know, they love baseball in in a way which is just pure joy. They're playing playing on the street — like stick ball, I guess you call it — with like a broom handle."

At the stadium there, he said: "It's amazing. The fans are so into it. It's infectious when you're there. The noisiest stadiums you're ever going to be in are in the Dominican Republic or Cuba. The fandom and the love of the game is something else."

But, he added that he also loves Japanese baseball — and the sport in Korea, as well.

"One of the things I first noticed was that in Korea it's much more like a KPop concert. And then when you go to Japan, they have a lot of brass instruments."

The customs and traditions of international cultures are displayed proudly in stadiums, he said.

"The instruments change. Everyone's still chanting, singing and whatever else, but the way people chant and the way people sing and the instruments they use to make the noise are different," he said. "You get to the Dominican Republic, and you've got all the horns and the drums and whistles and things. So it all changes everywhere you go. I love the how the atmosphere changes and the way they play the game."

In addition to baseball, Brown has also painted cricket in India."I grew up watching cricket and football (soccer)," he said. "When I got to Korea there was no cricket, and that was where baseball took over."

Now, he paints a "fair bit of cricket," traveling to New Zealand, Sri Lanka and India. He was also the official artist to the Indian Premier League.

"India is such an amazing, beautiful place, and the culture is so diverse, but so vibrant and so colorful. For an artist, it's a wonderful place to be and paint and meet people and mingle and get into it," Brown said.

When asked, having traveled the world, if some governments were more restrictive and impacted the ways fans were able to embrace the sport, Brown said: "It does vary, without a doubt. When I was painting in Cuba, within not too long of painting the picture, I'm there in the stands, and I realized that there were no advertisements. The year before I was in Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, and there was the advert for Geico, or whatever else."

But in Cuba, around the walls, "you've pictures of Che Guevara and you've got pictures of you know, the political system, basically, over there," he said.

He added: "I always find that really interesting, that where you go, the security, the atmosphere, the architecture, really reflects the culture."

Despite cultural differences, people around the world share basic human values, tied by hearts and a shared love of a sport that transcends language and geographic boundaries, Brown believes.

"I find that no matter where I go, the people are baseball fans and they're wonderful," Brown said. "When they see me paint and they come along, they're so generous. In Cuba, you know, many people have very little, but they're giving you snacks or juice. The people I've met through my work, it's just unbelievable. I can't believe how lucky I've been, in the places I've been."

And that includes Jamesport, on Long Island, Brown said. "I'm so grateful for all the support and the people I've met through the years. It's been outstanding."

Looking back on a lifetime spent capturing some of the most human moments and emotions on his canvas, Brown said his life's work has been deeply meaningful.

"It's given me everything," he said. "It's given me the greatest experience of my life. It's allowed me to meet the most amazing people — from Hall of Famers to young boys on the street trying to be the next Hall of Famer."

He added: "It's put me in touch with so many people that I wouldn't have met otherwise. I'm incredibly grateful for meeting those people, hearing their stories — and being given the trust and the honor of standing behind the easel, with my brush in my hand."

To all those who've supported his journey, Brown said: "Thank you so much, for the encouragement and support. I don't think people realize how much that means and how much it helps. Just little things, little gestures — people just coming up and saying hello and, cheering me on. That means everything."