Clare's work is neither abstract nor representational and draws from the entire artistic palette of fine art, illustration and design. It falls within the surrealist automatism tradition as defined by Andre Breton and later by Paul-Emile Borduas and the transautomatism style founded by Friedensreich Hundertwasser. At art school Clare specialised in fashion design. Her subsequent work in the fashion industry took her to India, China, HK, Tai-Wan, and North America where she observed and was influenced by many of the cultures she engaged with. We can truly say that she is speaking to the viewer in ‘another language’.
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~From Organic 2 Fluorescent~ |
The work is a series of contour lines in two dimensions representing the many dimensional world that Clare perceives around her. There are shapes described by the lines that could almost be organic while others are almost technological, some are troubling and psychological while others are joyful and triumphant. Many have a spiritual dimension and call for calm contemplation and introspection. Although the shapes are entirely of her own there are strange echoes of other artists such as Joan Miro. The shapes and lines have an almost visceral impact on the viewer; ideas and images seem to grow out of them reminiscent of “Magic eye” stereograms or the op art work of Brigit Riley. Clare’s pictures, being neither representational nor abstract; can be seen as a true reaction to the world around, commercial, social, public and private. Here we see the direct workings of Clare’s unconscious and subconscious mind with a confusion of memories, dreams and reflections which provides access to the thinking of Jung and Freud and such ideas as Flowdreaming and The Law of Attraction. Her work is intricate and detailed and requires close attention and contemplation to allow access to the hidden dream journeys beneath.
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~FUSION Mandala~ |
One of the recurring themes in Clare’s work is that of the Mandala, a Sanskrit word meaning circle, which provides an object of meditation in Hinduism and Buddhism. The Mandala represents the Universe and the journey inwards to the centre point of self. Clare’s mandalas vary from the traditional in that they are expressed freely and eschew the linear geometry of the orthodox but they continue to represent the inward journey.
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~Invisible~ |
Clare also adds to the complexity of her work by including found and created objects in collage. She uses photographs, old documents related to her life and scans of her own artwork. These are torn, scratched and worked into with gouache, inks, acrylics + hand stitching. This added layering produces a richness and depth of both meaning and effect.
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