Eric Poole has loved sports and drawing for as long as he can remember, aspiring to be a cartoonist.

While earning a writing degree from the University of Pittsburgh, the Ligonier native worked as a cartoonist for the school’s student newspaper, The Pitt News, from 2002 to 2004.

Poole started as an editorial cartoonist. When the college advertised for a comic strip artist, Poole submitted a few pieces and got the job, adding a second comic strip his senior year.

“All told, I was doing around four to five illustrations a week, which was a great way to build up a portfolio of published work,” the Delmont resident said.

Poole initially planned to go into marketing after graduation, but realized during his senior year that he enjoyed drawing and graphic design too much to push them aside.

“I wanted to give it a go as a career,” he said.

Fresh out of college, Poole worked at a small print shop in Johnstown, where he learned graphics programs and adapted his drawing style for digital art.

“I did end up working for a marketing company out in Topeka, Kan., for five years from 2006 to 2011 as a graphic artist in their art department,” he added.

Focusing on sports art

Though his dream of being a cartoonist waned after graduation, Poole’s passion for sports and illustration remained. Learning new illustrative styles for his graphic design career, he began to focus on sports art, starting with hockey, then branching out to football and baseball.

Poole uses a hybrid style to create his artwork. He hand sketches his pieces, then scans them into Adobe Illustrator (his preferred program) for inking, coloring and backgrounds.

He posted his hockey artwork online for a few years before he was contacted by his first professional sports organization: the National Rugby League (NRL) in Australia.

“Lo and behold, the social media manager for the NRL was a big Penguins fan, and saw some of my Penguins artwork after their back-to-back Stanley Cup wins,” Poole said. “He reached out and wanted me to create mascot art for the NRL, and that’s where it got started.”

Poole worked with the NRL for about four years until the league switched marketing strategies. His artwork also has been featured by the National Hockey League, the Kontinental Hockey League in Russia and by The Sports Network channel in Canada.

A lifelong affinity

Hockey is Poole’s favorite sport to watch, with football a close second.

“I love the games, but I also enjoy the logos, colors and uniforms of the teams from a creative standpoint,” he said. “I’ve always had an affinity for the cosmetics and branding of sports since I was a little kid … so me being a sports artist pretty much fits the bill.”

Poole played baseball throughout high school, and later played recreational softball and dek hockey. He still plays dek hockey in Latrobe and coaches his son’s baseball team in Murrysville.

To see more of Poole’s work, visit him on Instagram at instagram.com/epoole88.

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