
Leo Webster
Senior Specialist
£3,000 - £5,000
Senior Specialist
Sale Coordinator
Exhibited
London, The Kennel Club, Annual Exhibition, 2012.
After meeting "Sam's Magic", an ex-champion racing greyhound, Clae was struck by his impressive stature, pristine whiteness and regal presence; so much so that she felt compelled to paint his portrait. Clae chose to set the painting in the historic grounds of Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. The location echoes Queen Victoria's deep admiration for her beloved dogs who would have walked in these same grounds.
The portrait of "Sam's Magic" was completed in 2005 (dated 2006) and was exhibited at the Kennel Club, London, alongside works by Edward Landseer and other distinguished dog painters.
Following this exhibition, the Kennel Club commissioned Clae to paint HRH Queen Elizabeth II, the club's patron at the time. This portrait was completed in 2013 and still hangs on permanent display at the Kennel Club headquarters in London.
Subsequently, Clae was commissioned to paint the champion Greyhound "Shashi", the winner of the last Waterloo Cup in 2005 (owned by Michael Darnell and Albert Shackcloth).
More recently, Clae has been focussing on figurative work with series of works titled 'Painting the Poets' and 'Painting the Comedians'.