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Neil Eckersley OLY

@olyart

Contemporary Artist @ Portland Studio | Creative design, Photography, Art, Poetry, Motivational speaker. Olympic Artist, Olympic Medalist.

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02.01.2025
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Latest posts by Neil Eckersley OLY @olyart

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Manchester “ever evolving city”

A city shaped by industry, energy and constant change.
From its industrial past to the cranes shaping the skyline today, Manchester never stands still.

#Manchester #AbstractArt #UrbanArt #ContemporaryArt

Work created by Neil Eckersley

Www.olyart.co.uk

13.03.2026 16:45 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Manchester "Hive of Creativity".

A city powered by ideas, energy and people who dare to create.
Like a hive, every individual contribution adds to something bigger music, art, industry and culture all buzzing together.

This piece is a celebration of that spirit.

Www.olyart.co.uk

12.03.2026 17:24 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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What artists do all day thinking, observing, absorbing.
Just taking a quiet break in the city of my youth.

Www.olyart.co.uk

©️Neil Eckersley OLY

11.03.2026 17:03 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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H.O.P.E

This body of work has appeared in some unusual places Lancaster Priory, beneath a motorway bridge, inside a designer boutique, and even an abandoned hospital.

Different spaces. Different people.
The same question

Can light still exist in the middle of chaos

#HOPE #Art

10.03.2026 15:15 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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H.O.P.E

This body of work has appeared in some unusual places Lancaster Priory, beneath a motorway bridge, inside a designer boutique, and even an abandoned hospital.

Different spaces. Different people.
The same question

Can light still exist in the middle of chaos

#HOPE #Art

10.03.2026 15:13 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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New York, to that tall skyline I come, flyin’ in from London to your door
New York, lookin’ down on Central Park
Where they say you should not wander after dark

The city that never sleeps, fuels the dream that never stops.

CORE by Neil Eckersley OLY

Www.olyart.co.uk

©️Neil Eckersley OLY

09.03.2026 11:18 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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We sit at a distance, watching through a television screen.
Scenes unfold that feel so far away, almost unreal.

Is this our new reality?
Is this how it’s meant to play out?

Surely we are better than this.
Surely humanity is capable of more than simply watching from afar.

08.03.2026 12:41 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Judoka in a Parka my story told as a children’s book. From struggling with dyslexia to becoming a double Olympian Olympic medallist.

We have self-published but are looking for a publisher to help take it further and make it more affordable so it can reach a wider audience.

07.03.2026 13:53 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Bring back happy memories LA84 Olympics

06.03.2026 10:49 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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The Chaos of a Manufactured War explores, through poetry and illustration, the psychological and human impact of war an attempt by artists to reflect on and make sense of its consequences.

©️Chamberlain/Eckersley

05.03.2026 13:02 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Exploring 3 forms of movement:
Dance. Fencing. Judo.

Flow. Precision. Power.

I’m chasing that split second where the body becomes pure energy.

From Olympian to artist still obsessed with movement.

Originals & limited editions available:
www.olyart.co.uk

26.02.2026 13:41 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Training camp in 1988 looked a little different.

We were based by the Dead Sea the lowest place on earth in the build-up to the European Championships, where I went on to place third .

Part of the “recovery” routine was covering ourselves head to toe in black mineral mud, standing in the sun.

24.02.2026 09:57 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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What a truly fantastic 2026 Winter Olympics.

For almost 17 days I was on the edge of my seat and I’m now officially an Olympic nerd. The skill, courage and composure of those Olympians was simply unbelievable.

Www.olyart.co.uk

23.02.2026 10:13 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Woke up on competition day at the 1984 Summer Olympics not knowing my life was about to change forever.

Calm. Prepared. Ready.
10,000 hours behind me.

First up for a remarkable British team set the benchmark.

Bronze medal. Momentum built.
Unforgettable pride.

22.02.2026 09:51 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Landed in Los Angeles for the 1984 Summer Olympics and straight away there he was — Sam the Olympic Eagle — there to welcome us.

That’s when it hit me… this wasn’t just another tournament. This was the Olympic Games.

A real hit from the archives.

©️Neil Eckersley OLY

21.02.2026 12:50 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Quarter-final at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games.

I remember staring at my next opponent as he watched my previous fight. In judo, the contest often starts before you step on the mat.

Eye contact. Body language Silence.

A quiet way of playing the psychological game letting him know I was ready

19.02.2026 14:25 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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New York, to that tall skyline I come, flyin’ in from London to your door
New York, lookin’ down on Central Park
Where they say you should not wander after dark

The city that never sleeps fuels the dream that never stops.

#NewYorkStateOfMind

Www.olyart.co.uk
©️Neil Eckersley OLY

19.02.2026 13:25 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Transitioning from Olympian Judoka to Olympian Artist has been an incredible journey. From competing on the world’s biggest stages to now exhibiting at the Olympic Games through my artwork.

17.02.2026 13:11 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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14.02.2026 10:55 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Two works, one story: celebrating the Olympic Games’ return to Los Angeles in 2028.

A sculpture inspired by the LA skyline layers of colour, texture, and energy set against the Colosseum, linking the Games’ past and present.

An abstract painting captures LA itself: sunshine, ocean waves.

11.02.2026 12:00 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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More photos from the archives…
First photo taken on the London Underground heading to Heathrow to join Team GB for LA 1984. A journey that changed my life.

Fishing trip in LA… smiles to seasickness fast — ask Neil Adams about the Elvis boat story!

Www.olyart.co.uk
©️Neil Eckersley OLY

08.02.2026 10:48 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Inspired by Manhattanhenge — when the sun aligns with the NYC street grid and floods the city with light.

This work explores the clash between nature and urban structure… energy, rhythm and movement.

What does it make you feel?

www.olyart.co.uk
©️ Neil Eckersley OLY

#ContemporaryArt

05.02.2026 11:46 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Only a few days to go until the Winter Olympic Games begin in Milano–Cortina, Italy.

As the world comes together to celebrate sport at its highest level, we are reminded of the Olympic values that unite us all: Excellence, Respect and Friendship.

Www.olyart.co.uk

04.02.2026 09:40 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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1983, just turned 18, first ever visit to Japan . Self funded we stayed a full month to get our money’s worth. Every day we trained in a different dojo two grueling sessions daily. Sunday morning run round the Imperial Palace earned a rare day off. Brutal even for a lightweight nobody took prisoners

02.02.2026 12:46 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Voices That Will Not Be Drowned

Inspired by our recent visit to Aldeburgh beach, this mixed-media work combines drawing and digital layering, responding to Maggi Hambling’s The Scallop. Fractured textures echo erosion, time and the changing Suffolk coastline.

#MixedMediaArt

Www.olyart.co.uk

01.02.2026 12:15 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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11 Jan 1987 — Matsutaro Shoriki Cup, Tokyo 🇯🇵

Only three on the podium because I had to fight Eddie Lyddy for bronze — an Olympic bronze medallist from LA ’84.

Proud to be the first ever lightweight to medal in Japan.

Respect. Experience. Memories.

31.01.2026 10:37 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Happy memories indeed. Competing in Potsdam, East Germany, and narrowly losing the final. Passing through Checkpoint Charlie on 23 March 1986 crossing into what was once behind the Berlin Wall. Sport, history, perspective.

Meeting one of my heroes, Yury Sokolov.

Www.olyart.co.uk

29.01.2026 15:14 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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CORE
Inspired by a concrete core sample from the bedrock beneath New York City the unseen foundation that supports its iconic skyline.

A sculptural study of permanence, resilience, and what everything is built on.

#ContemporarySculpture #ArtCollectors #NYCArt #ArchitectureInspired #CollectibleArt

28.01.2026 20:35 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Final session with the brilliant students in Brooklyn, New York what an amazing experience. Thank you for your enthusiasm and creativity. Can’t wait to see your future work.
#TheArtofTheOlympians #OlympicArtist #ArtEducation
©️ Neil Eckersley OLY

Www.olyart.co.uk

28.01.2026 12:56 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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From dyslexia to the Olympic podium
Two-time Olympian & artist Neil Eckersley shares his inspiring journey in Judoka in a Parka.

Beautifully illustrated by Anita Chamberlain

Order here: www.blurb.co.uk/bookstore/in...

#JudokainaParka #Dyslexia #Olympian #JudoFamily #Olympics

28.01.2026 10:03 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0