ZACHARY’S PIZZA ART CONTEST: SPOTLIGHT ON ANIMAL LOVERS

Over the past two decades, our artists have been inspired by a wide range of topics. History? Fictional characters? Popular Culture? Pizza (duh!)? You name it. One theme that consistently shows up in the contests every year is our artists’ love of animals.

A painting of a black and white dog sitting on a pink armchair, holding a slice of pizza in its mouth. The background is green with the text: Harrys a lucky dog he gets Zacharys!.Our first example of animal-inspired art is this piece by Lisa Hayle. Hayle has been inspired by her dog Harry for years. Lisa writes, “I heard about Zachary’s Pizza through friends who also mentioned the awesome annual poster contest, which they had won in the past with an entry featuring their two adorable poodles. Soon after, I tasted the deep-dish yumminess for the first time…. I first saw Harry in 2002, while working briefly at the East Bay SPCA in Oakland. It was love at first sight.”

Illustrated poster of a dog with sunglasses and a mohawk, sitting inside a red circle. Text reads: Paws for Pizza with locations: Oakland, Berkeley, San Ramon, Pleasant Hill. Top text celebrates 4.25 dog years of pizza.

 

Another canine-inspired piece is “Dog Years” by artist Ian Ransley (visit Ian’s website here!). Ransley has submitted eleven winning pieces in Zachary’s art contests over the years. In addition to putting animals front and center, this piece celebrated our 30th anniversary!

 

 

 

A blue background with the name Zacharys in large white letters at the top. A cartoon character on a ladder reaches for a pizza slice among many red and orange pizza slices and circles hanging down.If cats are your furry friend of choice, you have something in common with artist Nikola Bachman. Bachman writes about her winning piece, “I’m a cat lover at heart therefore the kitty in the painting that I drew for Zachary’s was inspired by my own cat Jackson.”

 

 

And don’t think that creature-inspired art stops at cats and dogs! Our artists have been inspired by reptiles (Amy Neil, 2005 winner) and insects (Emma Ruth 2012) too!Cartoon of an elderly man with a white beard, wearing a blue coat labeled Darwin, pointing up. A large turtle with a red, spiral-patterned shell stands beside him. A speech bubble says, Zacharys Pizza Highly Evolved!.A colorful painting of a butterfly with yellow and red wings. Above it is a sun with Zacharys written inside. Below, flowers in red, white, and blue, a bee hovering, and a brown rabbit are set against a blue sky background.

Animals make their way into the art in big and small ways. We will leave you with several more animal-inspired pieces. The deadline for submissions this year is May 16! Pick up your paper canvas at any Zachary’s location today!

A drawing of a bear sitting by a tree, holding a pizza box labeled Zacharys Chicago Pizza Inc. The bear has a happy expression, surrounded by colorful flowers. Text reads Hmmm Beary Yummy with small hearts.A black and white dog with a collar labeled Bella sits on green grass. A hand offers a slice of pizza, with the words Will Do Tricks For Zacharys above. Red streaks suggest the pizzas enticing aroma.

A painting of a girl in a red dress eating pizza, surrounded by three cats, who are looking at the pizza. The text reads Pizza de la Zacharys Délicieux and Mackenzie. The image has a playful, vintage style.

Cartoon pandas surrounding a large pizza with mushrooms and pepperoni, with the text Zacharys Chicago Pizza Inc. above in a handwritten style. A panda is reaching for a slice with a long cheese pull.