If you’re in Toronto this summer, make the Toronto Reference Library one of your stops.

For the month of July, St. Thomas More Catholic Secondary School recent graduate Sofia Pimenta’s artwork will be on display at the library as a finalist in a teen art contest.

The contest involved creating an art piece that exemplified the theme of Nostalgia.

For Pimenta, that meant using bright and cheerful colours and incorporating retro toys, like a Furby, a Tamagotchi and Play-Doh into her piece. The toys, she said, remind her of her childhood.

Using the digital art program IbisPaint, her phone and her finger, she created her submission to the contest. She first sketched the design for the art piece on a piece of paper and coloured the drawing digitally.

As a young child, Sofia has always loved art, said her mother, Anabela Pimenta.

“She began drawing traditionally as soon as she could hold a crayon, and she eventually moved on to digital art. By the age of 12, she had developed her art style and had filled quite a few sketchbooks in the process.”

“She has always felt connected to art and uses it as a form of relaxation and self-expression.”

Now, Sofia continues to develop her art in a variety of mediums, such as sculpting, painting, drawing, and painting murals – some of which adorn the walls of St. Thomas More.

In the coming years, Sofia plans to continue her creative endeavours by going to school to become an editor.

“Her recent win in the art contest with her digital artwork was a major accomplishment that she is very excited to share. She is grateful that her artwork stood out among the other entries and earned her a well-deserved victory.”