/ BIO

With Clare’s work you are tuning into the divine feminine and its ultimate connectedness. The work explores life, death, earth, nature and her cycles and seasons. The natural world that surrounds us with its recurring changes, are all inspirations and a constant reminder of our inner beings and our very own rhythm. Born in Hampshire (UK) in 1977 Clare was educated at St.Martins Central School, and Newcastle University before living and working in London for over a decade. Moving to rural Ireland in 2010 Clare became immersed in the natural world and fascinated with the druidic and new age practices that were at heart of her new home in Ireland.

 

Her work seeks to harness an ancient tradition of feminine wisdom and craft, and its ability to speak timeless truths. The making process embraces traditional techniques and materials with a wide range of mediums, textiles and textures. Initially a series of sketches on paper will be further developed into drawings on fabric that are then embroidered and worked on. The scale covers individual pieces just a few centimetres across right up to large quilts of over 4 square meters in size. The process is inspired by a deep appreciation of working with fibre, its form and shape. The embroidery is the finishing factor, the ‘inking in’ of the work that is essential for completion. Colours are direct and intuitive. There is an organic form and pattern which runs through the work, often in series, these echo the patterns and repetition which Clare observes both within in herself, the natural world and the ‘otherworld’.

 

Clare sees the divine feminine as central to her practice. Its celebration of creativity, life and universal connections are fundamental elements of her work. She draws on a cornerstone of Druidic belief; an existence of ‘the otherworld’ - a realm which exists beyond the reach of the physical senses, but which is nevertheless real. This otherworld is often seen as a place we travel to when we die, but we can also visit it during our lifetime, in dreams, in meditation, in hypnosis, or in ‘journeying. In Clare’s case, in journeying through her work.

 

Clare work has been exhibited in Ireland and the UK and her work is in various private collections. She lives and works in rural Ireland.