Pizza Art

We started an art contest in the mid-1980s and have continued the tradition every few years or so since then. We now have over 300 pieces of Zachary’s pizza art from the past three decades! The winning artwork decorates the walls in all five of our restaurants. We love the art and the artists and are excited and honored to be able to share some of the art on our website!

A colorful painting features a pink background with a cat on a pizza atop a table. Speech bubbles say, cats live longer if they eat pizza, among other playful cat-related notes. A seated cat holds a drink. Text reads Pizza-Crazy Cats!.

Sophia Maria Brown

2017

Age 10

I fell in love with Zachary’s pizza the first time it touched the tip of my tongue. I loved doing the artwork and it was a bonus to win twice! I think everyone should participate. Love live Zachary’s!

Illustrated poster for Zacharys Chicago Pizza. A red bicycle with pizza wheels is set against a landscape with greenery and a tall clock tower. BERKELEY CALIFORNIA is written at the bottom.

Red Bike on Campus

2009

Carolyn Jaegar

A painting of a smiling family enjoying a pizza from Zacharys Chicago Pizza. The mother holds a pizza, while the father and two children, a boy and a girl, look up excitedly. A Zacharys Certified Quality sign is in the background.

Certified Quality Family

1990’s

A. Cavenecia

A colorful poster for Zacharys Deep Dish Pizza features a muscular, cartoonish character lifting two steaming pizzas like weights. The words Amazing, Stupendous, World Famous are above Deep Dish Pizza. The character wears a Pizza Champ belt.

Chuck Waite

2005

A colorful illustration featuring red heart-shaped slices of pizza against a purple background. Theres a white text box in the lower right with the words Zacharys Pizza in bold black letters.

Wesley Jensen

2009

A retro-style illustration of a woman with a shocked expression, hands on cheeks. Text reads, AARGGHHHH you didnt order Zacharys?! in bold, varying fonts.

Cindy Chan

“.. we love Zachary’s Pizza; it’s the best, combined with the high energy of the staff and how everyone seems to be having a great time, it’s like a party that never stops.” – Cindy Chan

Illustration of a pepperoni pizza in a box with a red heart, set against a decorative red background. The text reads, Make Pizza Not War, in bold black and red letters.

Ian Ransley

2015

Berkeley-born and raised designer Ian Ransley loves Zachary’s Pizza!! Who in Berkeley doesn’t? But Ian has found a way to graphically express his admiration for the famous deep-dish, Chicago-style pies — not once, but a dozen times.

Ian grew up in the Thousand Oaks neighborhood (near the Solano Zachary’s). His mom still lives in the neighborhood house he grew up. Ian did spend some time away from his beloved Berkeley getting a design degree from UC Davis. In the years since he has designed for Chevron, HP, Cisco and of course, Zachary’s! For the past decade Ian has designed the stadium graphics for the Super Bowl, Fiesta Bowl and currently for the NHL Winter Classic in Foxboro.
Even though Ian has designed the stadium graphics for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Denver Broncos he is known as the guy who won the Zachary’s Pizza poster contest. Ian is a single Dad with two Zachary’s-loving boys, Dylan and Fabien.

SOLD in our 2018 Art Sale and Fundraiser!

Cartoon image of Sir Zachary wearing a horned helmet, holding a sword against a green dragon breathing pizza flames. The background shows a purple hill and a castle. Text reads Sir Zachary conquers the Pizza Dragon.

Leo Gould, 11 years old

2009

Colorful poster for Zacharys Chicago Pizza featuring a handprint-designed pizza in the center. Bold text reads Hands Down Best Pizza in Town! against a swirling red, blue, yellow, and green background.

Lisa Clark & Play and Learn Butterfly Classroom, ages 3-4

2012

A colorful artwork featuring a green scooter with a pepperoni pizza slice as a wheel. The background is yellow with vertical stripes in red and blue. Text reads, Not just a pizza... A lifestyle. A circled arrow points upwards.

Stew Ellington

2017

My painting was inspired by a dual love for Zachary’s deep-dish spinach-and-mushroom pizza and vintage Italian Vespa scooters. I thought it would be a good idea to connect the two by making the front wheel of the scooter a deep-dish pizza. I had a lot of fun using bright, primary colors to imitate the style of Italian Vespa ads from the 50s and 60s. It’s so awesome to take part in this community tradition! Thanks, Zachary’s!

A poster titled The Mark of Zacharys features a silhouette of a caped rider on a horse, holding a pizza slice. The background has red and orange swirls. The words Chicago Pizza are at the bottom corners.

Donna and Tony Aweeka

2009

“On May 27, 2008 our wonderful rescued mare, Satin’s Fancy, presented us with a beautiful black filly…unexpectedly. We named her Satin’s Prize, S’Prize for short. When we began this piece we knew we wanted Zorro on a black horse, hence S’Prize. The rest just fell into place, as art projects usually do. We had a good time with this one, letting it unfold as it developed a life of its own. Tony was the model for Zorro, and a Zachary’s pizza box gave us some inspiration, as well as a GREAT pizza.” – Donna Aweeka

An Egyptian-themed mural depicts ancient figures with a modern twist, incorporating pizzas and vegetables. The top reads Zacharys, and the scene features vivid colors and hieroglyphic-style art blending history with modern elements.

Pharoahs

2005

Michelle Petherick & Richard Cooluirs

A whimsical painting of a blue anthropomorphic cat wearing a pink apron, holding a pizza, and standing near an oven. A purple cat and a green cat watch. A retro clock and the word Purrrfecto!!! are on the wall.

Marko Yamagata

2015

Colorful mural featuring a stylized figure in traditional attire pointing toward a vibrant circular design with a sun face. The text Zacharys is above and In Any Age is below the circle. Brown background enhances the designs vivid colors.

Mayan Calendar

1990’s

Artist Unknown

The Capone of Pizza

2007

David Loya

Illustrated poster of Zacharys Pizza with two pizzas on motorcycles racing along a desert highway. The pizzas have sunglasses and wheels made of pepperoni slices. There are cacti and hills in the background.

Lynn Smull

2005

Colorful drawing featuring a large pizza labeled Zacharys in the center. Surrounded by playful animal figures, hearts, and phrases such as I love Zacharys Pizza! and It has cheese in it. A whimsical and fun design with vibrant colors.

Simone Gardner

2015

A man in a suit and bowler hat holds an umbrella, standing with his back facing the viewer. He gazes at an abstract artwork featuring dynamic red, black, and white swirls. The name Zacharys is at the top, with Its a matter of taste below.

Hannah de Vries

2015

My name is Hannah de Vries and art has been my passion from a very young age. My entry was inspired by a famous Norman Rockwell painting called “The Connoisseur.” I alluded to the uniqueness of Zachary’s Pizza by making comparisons to the historical context behind Abstract Expressionism of the 1940’s, a subject that I have studied in school. I worked tirelessly for about three days at a wonderful art gallery called ArtU4ia in downtown Martinez to complete this piece. The most fun I had working on it was by far doing the drip pizza; I loved getting messy and wild with the house paint!

I always loved seeing the art that hung on the walls at the Zachary’s College location, and I aspired to enter their art competition for years! Once the Pleasant Hill location opened up closer to my home town, I finally took the opportunity to create something that I was proud to call my own.

Illustration of a woman in a blue dress with pizza toppings, sitting on a chair. Shes against an orange background with flying birds and floral patterns. An old portrait is framed on the wall. Text reads Zacharys Chicago Pizza Inc.

Birthe Lauvdal

2012

Illustration of a cartoon character holding a slice of pepperoni pizza. The background is blue, with the text ENJOY at the top and ZACHARYS PIZZA at the bottom in stylized letters. The character appears joyful and anticipatory.

Pete Docter
I like to draw and paint yet don’t do it often enough. The allure of winning free pizza was strong and I made a few posters.
Influences: 1950’s poster design, especially Paul Rand, Cassandre, and Raymond Savignac. Also children’s book illustrator Roy McKee (he illustrated the Dr. Seuss books “Ten Apples Up on Top” and “Snow”).
My whole family loves Zachary’s Pizza, though we’re divided over which is best: stuffed pesto mushroom or stuffed pepperoni. Actually thin crust sausage onion is pretty good too. When both of our kids were born, we smuggled Zachary’s into the maternity ward.