Celebrating Female Excellence in Motion: The Art of Sara Pope
- Jul 16, 2025
- 6 min read
Updated: Aug 4, 2025
At Women in Wheels, we celebrate female excellence in motion, a shared love of high-performance cars, elevated living, and curated experiences. We were founded to fill a crucial gap, creating an environment where women feel empowered, connected, and celebrated behind the wheel and beyond. We challenge the notion that high-octane luxury is solely a male domain.
This ethos finds a remarkable parallel in the work of Sara Pope, an artist whose signature ultra-glossy, lip-focused paintings have made her a celebrated figure in contemporary art. Sara's captivating creations have graced galleries from London to Miami. She even made history at the Vatican as the first British female artist in over 70 years to have her work accepted into their esteemed collection. Known for her stunning portraits of royalty, celebrities, and cultural icons, Sara is now bringing her distinctive style to Salon Privé with a striking tribute to beauty and the seductive power of design.
Just as Women in Wheels members embody precision, power, and undeniable presence, Sara's art reflects these very qualities. Her presence at Salon Privé is an exceptional alignment for our community.
The Expressive Power of the Mouth: A Modern Portrait of Identity
Sara's paintings are instantly recognizable: bold, hyper-glossy, and utterly mesmerizing. She was first drawn to the face, which holds so much personality and emotion. However, as she delved deeper into its expressiveness, her focus narrowed to just the mouth. It’s incredibly expressive on its own. It plays a fundamental role in how we connect, through eating, breathing, speaking, and kissing. For Sara, capturing each person’s unique expression through this single feature became a kind of modern portraiture.
Her visual style has evolved alongside this focus. Her early work was more painterly, with visible brushstrokes and dripping paint. Over time, it became increasingly precise and polished. This shift mirrors how we consume images digitally today, with the trend towards perfection and smoothness. Sara's work reflects this by removing all traces of brushstrokes, creating that smooth, hyperreal finish people now associate with her art. This pursuit of refined precision resonates deeply with our members, who appreciate beauty in both engineering and experience.
From Canvas to Portrait: Capturing Essence, Just Like We Drive
Sara’s process is a captivating blend of makeup artistry, photography, and traditional painting. This results in pieces that feel deeply personal. It always starts with the subject entering her studio, where Sara applies lipstick to their lips, which become the first canvas. She uses gloss and color to highlight the three-dimensional form of the mouth. A relaxed photoshoot follows, with hundreds of shots taken to capture those fleeting, expressive moments that reveal the person’s true essence.
These images then inspire the final painting. Sara slowly builds up layers of color, smoothing and blending at each stage until it becomes fully dimensional. For her, it’s about going beyond the surface to capture a spark of the person’s essence, making it a true portrait. This dedication to uncovering and portraying authentic essence aligns perfectly with the Women in Wheels philosophy. Our members don't just drive; they arrive, with a presence that reflects their true selves.
Painting Icons: Celebrating Strength and Contribution
Sara’s work has garnered attention from high-profile collectors, including royalty, opera stars, and global beauty icons. She has had the privilege of painting some incredible people, including Princess Theodora von Liechtenstein, Huda Kattan (founder of Huda Beauty), opera singer Benson Wilson, and, of course, the late Pope Francis, which was incredibly special.
One recent project held particular significance: a portrait of Yvonne Johnson, who lives with motor neurone disease. The piece titled YVONNE not only raised over fifteen thousand pounds for MND research but also highlighted how this disease can eventually take away one's ability to use their mouth, to speak, and to communicate. Given how much Sara's work is about expression and communication, it was a powerful, emotional reminder of why she does what she does and how impactful these portraits truly are. Just as Sara celebrates strength and contribution through her art, Women in Wheels fosters a community where women who lead, create, and inspire are celebrated and supported.
The Seduction of Red: The Colour of Passion and Performance
Red is a dominant feature in Sara’s work, especially in her recent RED series, which includes her stunning tribute to Rosso Corsa. She has always been drawn to red; her studio is filled with a thousand shades. This fascination led her to create the RED series, exploring red’s emotional and symbolic power.
Red is a primal color that doesn’t just grab your attention; it physically affects you. It can actually raise your heart rate. We don’t just see red; we feel red. This is why it’s so often used to signify danger, passion, speed, and intensity. It makes perfect sense that Ferrari chose Rosso Corsa as their iconic shade, as it exudes power, beauty, and energy. Sara's painting ROSSO CORSA is a celebration of all that, where color becomes emotion, movement, and presence. For Women in Wheels, this resonates deeply. Our members embrace speed, passion, and the powerful presence of their chosen vehicles, whether it's a McLaren, Porsche, or Aston Martin.
Art and Automotive Design: A Shared Sensibility of Excellence
Salon Privé celebrates the art of automotive design, where form meets function, beauty, and craftsmanship. Sara sees a definite connection between a beautifully designed car and her approach to painting. When she paints, beauty is a crucial factor, not in a shallow sense, but in terms of form, presence, and emotional impact. With her background in magazines and as a shoe designer in fashion, she has always been fascinated by aesthetics and beauty, bringing that same sensibility to her art.
Her painting process feels a bit like sculpting, shaping a three-dimensional illusion from a flat surface using color, light, and shadow. Just as a car designer crafts a form that’s both visually striking and emotionally resonant, Sara aims to do the same through her work. This mirrors the discerning eye of our members, who recognize beauty in both engineering and experience, appreciating the balance of beauty and engineering that defines both high-performance cars and Sara’s art.
Dream Collaborations and The Power of Authenticity
Artists like Warhol have famously painted directly onto cars. If Sara had the chance, it would have to be Ferrari. That red, the legacy, the beauty, it’s such a natural fit with her work. Her ultimate car crush is the Ferrari Testarossa from the '80s, which she describes as "pure design joy." However, she would also love to work with any of the modern models. Their sleek curves and beautiful form would make an incredible canvas.
For emerging artists trying to build their own visual world, Sara offers invaluable advice: stay true to your own curiosity. No one else has your exact perspective or interests, and that’s your superpower. Staying connected to what genuinely fascinates you will naturally make your work unique and authentic. That’s where the magic is. This spirit of individuality and genuine passion is precisely what defines our Women in Wheels community.
A Special Gift for Salon Privé: ROSSO CORSA Print
This year, Sara has teamed up with EDiT Gallery in Greenwich to offer a special prize for Salon Privé attendees: a signed print of ROSSO CORSA, valued at £800. This piece is particularly special to her; it’s not just a painting. It’s a celebration of the bold, visceral power of the color red and everything it represents: passion, speed, beauty, and intensity. It felt like the perfect artwork to offer in partnership with EDiT Gallery for Salon Privé, as it so naturally ties together the worlds of art and automotive design. The event itself is all about excellence, elegance, and craftsmanship—values Sara also pours into her own work. Offering a signed print felt like a great way to connect with the audience in a more personal way, and hopefully give one lucky guest something striking to take home and enjoy. Attendees can find out how to enter when visiting Sara's display during the event.
Sara Pope’s art, much like the high-performance vehicles our members cherish, embodies precision, power, and undeniable allure. Her ability to capture the essence of expression and infuse it with vibrant energy makes her work truly resonate with the spirit of Women in Wheels.
We are delighted to announce that Women in Wheels members will have the opportunity to meet and talk with Sara Pope herself at Salon Privé. Sara will be at Salon Privé each day, so visit her display and connect with a visionary artist whose work speaks to our shared appreciation for beauty, design, and powerful presence. This will further enrich the curated experiences that define our club. Come engage in conversation that carries, celebrating female excellence in motion, and beyond the wheel.
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