Artist Research: Sophie Tea

Sophie Tea upcycles charity shop items every week. She visits a charity shops, picks an item and ten paints something onto it and then takes it back and puts it up for sale at the same place. Sophie has a large social media following, and she shares her work to her followers to put a spotlight on charity shops and awaits or someone to see her post and come to buy the item. place.

Tea describes charity shops as ‘treasure troves’ as you never know what you’re going to find. It’s not just about the good value, but the uniqueness that comes with each object. She doesn’t go into the shop knowing what she is going to paint but instead looks for ‘pieces that are a little quirky or have a vintage feel- something that has lived a life before it found its way to me’. The reason this is an important thought process is because I am wanting my work to be old treasure, something that meant a lot to someone else and appears to have been older, vintage items.

Another inspiration behind Sophie Tea’s art and aid to help charities is a way to express her emotions and connect with others. Knowing that her work can create awareness and bring people together is a reason she likes to create. An aim behind my work is to have an impact on those that view it. I want people to take something from it, whether that be a memory, an emotion or a new thought.

Wanting to make women feel nicer about themselves, Tea’s work carries a message of inclusivity and celebrating the unique beauty of the female form. place.

Although my work has a very different aesthetic and feel, I am still inspired by the thought and reasoning behind Sophie Tea’s work. Looking at what she creates has opened my mind more to the things I can create, taking things further than what I have had been thinking.