By Jordan Snowden

Even if you haven’t stepped foot inside Comet Ping Pong, at some point you’ve probably seen one of Sophie McTear’s unique designs. The talented 20-year-old recently became the club’s junior designer, solidifying their foothold as one of the city’s rising artists. McTear’s distinctive designs mix their love and passion of music with minimalist styles and dark and light themes, creating eye-catching illustrations that have garnered plenty of praise throughout the music community.

We recently spoke with McTear to find out more about this accomplished artist, including leaving school to pursue their dreams, what inspires their unique designs and more.

D.C. Music Download: At only 20 years old, you’re already making a name for yourself within the art and music community. What were some of the challenges you’ve faced in order to get to this point?

Sophie McTear: I’m still facing challenges, in all honesty. Being an artist is obviously not the most lucrative job out there. I work retail most days, but finding time to do my art has been a bit of a challenge lately. My days have been mostly working, sleeping and not much in-between. I withdrew from university this past year to focus on my art, but with that comes a lot of stigma.

DCMD: When you dropped out of school, how did your friends and family react to your decision? Were they supportive with your choice?

SM: As far as the support of friends and family, they’ve been pretty supportive, though I don’t have really constant communication with a big part of my family. Some of my friends at George Washington University were apprehensive. Someone who I had been really close with told me I’d regret it, but I haven’t yet. I strongly believe if I was still there I’d have another mental breakdown. My health is the most important thing to me, and after that comes my artwork and livelihood.

DCMD: How did you get started with art and graphic design?

SM: Well, in high school I had played with a few Adobe programs. When I got to college I saw an ad for a job at the student newspaper for a design assistant. I applied and was accepted. After a few months there, I was moved up to design editor and spent almost two years running the print newspaper, The Hatchet, at GW. I had a really great time there, and it allowed me to be able to focus on improving my technical skills.

For a while, I was working an office job where there was a lot of downtime, so I would spend my free moments teaching myself how to improve on Adobe Illustrator. After that, I kind of just put my art out there and started drawing and designing for my friends who were in bands. Some of my first projects were T-shirt designs for Kissing Fractures and Makeshift Shelters.

I then met the ladies from Comet at a poster workshop run by Jourdan Betette, also known as Magickbat Design. We all clicked and I was added to the team there. I’ve been working on more and more posters since then, and have enjoyed it so much.

DCMD: Similar to how you got started, what is your creative background? Did you always like to illustrate or is it something you just sort of got into?

SM: I guess I sort of got ahead of myself earlier with my creative history. I’ve always loved art and everything to do with it, but in school I always leaned toward academics. In high school, I graduated like fourth out of 600 kids and was obsessed with my grades, so I had to put art on the back burner.

When I got to college I was majoring in political communication, but I only really enjoyed myself when I was working on the creative side of that (i.e. designing a logo, website or making a video). I then realized I wasn’t happy where I was, and decided to focus entirely on my visual and design futures.

DCMD: What inspires your designs?

SM: As cheesy as it sounds, the music itself. When preparing my work, I’ll listen to the band and write down adjectives, whether it be things to describe the genre or visual things that come to mind. I also am very inspired by things I’ve seen in passing. I’ll jot down notes when I’m on the Metro, maybe like the graffiti I pass on the red line or even someone’s outfit. Other things will just sort of float through my mind, like weird combinations of images. I like to mix dark and light ideas. I’ve wanted to design a baby’s mobile with fish carcasses on it. That sounds really strange when I say it out loud.

DCMD: Are there any artists that you look up to?

SM: Definitely. Obviously Jourdan. I also follow a lot of artists and tattoo artists on Instagram that I’m always drooling over. Think Tenderfoot Studio, Benjamin Constantine, Nomi Chi and Audra Auclair. A few people that are local or I have mutual friends with that make art that I obsess over are Corey Purvis, Alex Morante, Beau Brynes and Lauren Moran. Honestly, if you were to look through my Instagram follows you’d see a ton of awesome artists.

DCMD: How do you go about designing a poster?

SM: I usually begin with a general concept or a color scheme. Sometimes I’ll find an awesome texture online that I’m dying to use. I like incorporating flat colors with a bit of texture.

DCMD: Out of the posters you’ve designed, which ones stand out to you and why do they mean so much?

SM: A few of my favorites are ones I’ve made for CD Cellar, like the Grim Reaper I did holding a bouquet of flowers.

I’m also really proud of my double feature for the sold-out Frankie Cosmos/Girlpool show at Comet Ping Pong. It meant a lot because they’re two of my favorite bands, and it was also one of the first times I had sold my posters at a show. I sold out! It was a really nice feeling, and made me feel good about my work. Being an artist can be really frustrating sometimes, with self-doubt and comparing yourself to others, but ultimately the best thing to do is always strive to be the best you can possibly be.

Check out more of McTear’s work on Facebook and Tumblr