Sophie Green’s art gives wildlife a voice. She creates hyper-realistic animal paintings that raise awareness of conservation issues and allow people to appreciate the majesty and beauty of nature.
Process
Sophie’s paintings aren’t just accurate representations of the species they feature; they feel alive, they convey emotion. Sometimes they even feel like video diaries, like an animal reaching out to you to tell you about how to coexist before it’s too late. And the eyes are the most astonishing of all, they connect with your soul in a way that very few works of art ever manage to.
A lot of preparation goes into every painting. Even before Sophie starts the outline, she starts her research, and this ensures that the final work of art is vibrant and that it is infused with the spirit of its subject.
For example, on a trip to Kenya last year, Sophie woke up very early every day to watch the sunrise cast its golden hour glow over the animals of Africa. She got to watch them in their natural habitat at the time during which they were most active, and came back with many reference photos to use during the painting phase.
This immersion is crucial to the overall process. By the time Sophie is ready to start painting, she feels a deep connection to the animal, and this shines through in the soul of the finished piece. It takes a while to complete a piece, but she loves the process, and can sometimes completely zone out in the studio and lose herself in the ecstasy of creation.
Impermanence
Impermanence is a collection of 14 paintings created by Sophie in 2022 to highlight conservation issues across the world, highlighting some of the most critically endangered species today.
The title “Impermanence” is almost as intriguing as the paintings in the collection. Impermanence implies constant change – something that is a fact of life in the modern world. Our lives are constantly shifting and morphing, and we have to live with and embrace change. At the same time, impermanence in the natural world is also linked to the way in which life is fleeting, and also to the fact that the millions of species on which our existence depends are often endangered, and their very future is threatened. Impermanence need not necessarily evoke worry and feelings of danger; Sophie talks about how, if we are lucky, the world’s big conservation problems can also be impermanent; we can solve them if we act now, if we act together.
The genesis of Impermanence is fascinating; on a trip to – and beyond – the Arctic Circle in 2021, Sophie was struck by the impact of human-triggered climate change on the ecosystem. Her initial thought was to create a collection of paintings that would focus on wildlife native to the North Pole, impacted by the melting ice-caps and pollution. But as the project grew, she decided to broaden its scope to species across the world whose fragile ecosystems had been affected by human activity.
Sophie has often reflected that her ability to travel is a privilege and not a requirement, but it definitely helps her to feel more connected with the animals that she paints, observe how they move and behave and feel even more inspired and motivated to protect them. From an Arctic expedition that she was lucky enough to go on, Sophie was able to start the Impermanence Project Fund and support conservation projects around the world.
Commodities
Commodities is a collection of paintings that is very different: it is not a celebration of nature, but an exploration of how we have exploited animals for our benefit, and continue to do so. Sophie herself describes it as a portrayal of wildlife away from its native wild habitat, without the life that makes nature special. We use animals in every possible way, from food to labour, from entertainment to commerce. We turn the most breathtaking creatures on our planet into commodities.
The paintings that make up the Commodities collection have titles like ‘Reflection’, ‘Apathy’, ‘Temperance’, and ‘Modesty’. Through these one-word titles, Sophie creates a bridge between common psychological states of us humans and the emotions revealed through the pensive poses of her animal muses to help us feel what they feel. Her success in placing these majestic animals on a plinth in the paintings – just as we do to them in real life – can be seen in the comments on her social media posts about the collection, with fans pointing out the depth in ‘Apathy’, where a snow leopard stares straight at the viewer.
Spreading Awareness
One of Sophie’s fundamental beliefs is that a person’s intention is one of the most important things in any situation, and that it will always shine through. Therefore, she has always strived to be herself – an artist, someone who is passionate about wildlife. And doing these with all her being and taking inspired action has opened doors for her to visit amazing places and inspire hundreds and thousands of people across the world.
Given her massive online reach, she has many conversations with people about the impact her work has had on them. Something as simple as hearing that someone didn’t know a species was endangered till they saw one of her paintings, or even learning about the existence of a species (for example, African wild dogs and pangolins) makes her feel really good about making a difference, however large or small. Just inspiring people to take more of an interest in the natural world and wildlife is very special to her; when people feel more connected to the natural world, they tend to want to protect it more, too.
Volunteering
Sophie does not just spread awareness about conservation efforts and endangered species; she is also a keen proponent of walking the talk. To this end, she spends months volunteering with organisations across the world. She is very selective; she knows that there are rescue centres which rescue and rehabilitate wildlife, but that then keep the animals to ensure a steady supply of tourists and money.
She recently volunteered at The Jaguar Rescue Center (JRC) in Costa Rica. She loves that they are dedicated to rehabilitating and (most importantly) releasing wildlife like monkeys, sloths and other mammals, birds, and snakes.
After spending three months at JRC – a transformative experience – Sophie respects that they ensure that the animals don’t become too humanised. Although they do run tours to the public, they really need and rely on donations to continue doing the work that they do, so it’s a great cause to support.
Supporting Conservation Efforts
Similarly, she tries to support as many conservation charities as she can, but she’s always careful about investing her time and, more importantly, energy into charities and initiatives that she really believes in and knows will do good things with the money. It’s important to Sophie to build up a good relationship with the charity, so that she can understand where their values lie and where the money will go. This way, her collectors know that when they buy a piece of her art, their money will be put to good use!
Sophie collaborates with charities (for example, the International Fund for Animal Welfare and Explorers) in many ways. For example, she is an ambassador for The Jane Goodall Institute UK and Helping Rhinos. She also donates paintings to auctions that seek to raise funds for various conservation projects. For example, her painting of an African elephant, ‘Broken’, sold at auction in New York for $24,000, 100% of which was donated to community and wildlife conservation projects run by Tusk and ACCF.
Unquestionable
Sophie has ended up in some amazing places as a result of doing something that she is passionate about and taking inspired action. Her intention shines through in everything she does, and her chosen path in life has had many collateral benefits. For example, she started a podcast called Unquestionable with a friend, where they craft compelling conversations with thought leaders in multiple fields from all over the world. The listeners love it; it’s even been #1 in the United Kingdom a couple of times.
Unquestionable is a podcast about many things; it covers a wide range of subjects, but it is, at its core, about connection and humanity, and uses the personal experiences of its guests to draw the audience in. The depth of the discussions on the podcast – often covering life-altering experiences – is both inspiring and entertaining.
Time
Sophie does many things professionally: from travelling across the world to research her upcoming works of art to painting long hours to complete her pieces, to volunteering and hosting her podcast. When we asked her how she spends her time to be the best version of herself as an artist and person, she gave us this estimate:
- In solitude, or with a few very close people: 50%.
- Doing things for her art that aren’t painting: 15%.
- Painting: 15%.
- In the wild, photographing animals and soaking in inspiration: 10%.
- On the podcast: 5%.
- On other hobbies: 5%.
We also gave Sophie a virtual billion dollars to spend on conversation, and asked what her top three areas of spending would be. She chose to protect and clean up rivers and oceans, invest in renewable energy, and improve farming practices and food industries.
Future Plans
As of August 2024, Sophie has a very exciting project in the pipeline around travel and the natural world, which will remain a secret until it’s released into the world! She feels very blessed that her chosen career in art helps her make a real difference to the natural world.
Links
Sophie’s website: https://www.sophiegreenfineart.com/.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sophiegreenfineart/.
“Unquestionable” on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/unquestionable/id1694266358.