Portraiture has occupied the centre of my practice for around fifteen years. Over this period, my work has progressed toward an intersection of non-representation, marking an unanticipated turn toward pure shape and colour.
I am pulled increasingly to the relationships between shapes; from gesture to geometry, fragmentation to balance - surfacing tension and articulating a new visual language.
Born in Nottinghamshire, UK, in 1968, Clae (formerly Clae Eastgate) left the Birmingham School of Art before relocating to London in the early 1990s, where the foundations of her practice were further shaped. It was here that an early engagement with sculpture gave way to a sustained commitment to life drawing and painting, disciplines through which she forged a largely self-taught and instinctive visual language.
Since establishing her portrait practice in 2012, Clae has evolved from an initial concentration on private commissions to the development of research-led projects. Frequently realised in dialogue with fellow artists and cultural institutions, these bodies of work often foreground women of creative significance, positioning portraiture as a form of cultural record that acknowledges their lasting importance within the social and historical continuum.
More recently, her attention has turned to non-representation, where material enquiry and formal experimentation have become central to the work. Through a process of stripping back and a deeper engagement with simplicity of form, Clae explores the mutable relationships between rhythm and stillness, balance and harmony. These works move fluidly between observation and abstraction, evoking spaces of memory and presence, stirring a new visual emotion.
Clae also teaches A Level and GCSE Art & Design and private 1-2-1/group art sessions (please contact for information).
Clae 2026
Exhibitions and previous events
Exhibition of new work. Swanhill Studios September 24th - 1st October 2026
Art Academy London - Masterclass in Portraiture 2024
Kendal Poetry Festival 2024, in conversation with poet Imtiaz Dharker
Acquired by the Scottish National Portrait Gallery for the permanent collection 2020
Former National Poet of Wales, Gillian Clarke, is the latest portrait from the Painting the Poets collection to be acquired by the National Library of Wales' permanent collection.
As part of the Ledbury Poetry Festival and h.Arts Festival the Painting the Poets collection will be showcased during September & October 2023 in the Poetry House, Ledbury.
The portrait of Jackie Kay 'Red, Red' acquired for the Scottish National Portrait Gallery's permanent collection 2021
'Air and Light' - A Portrait of Carol Ann Duffy and 'Red Red' - a Portrait of Jackie Kay hanging side by side in the permanent Contemporary Portraiture collection at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.
Course Manager at BGA, an international distance - learning school. Art & Design IGCSE and A Level qualification.
As part of the Bishops Castle Arts festival a selection of portraits from the Painting the Poets collection will be exhibited in the Town Hall Gallery. PV 10th February, 6pm. All welcome.
I will be painting the award winning poet, Jane Burn's portrait for the Painting the Poets collection. This portrait will be slightly different, however, as Jane will be painting the background. The journey of this portrait in the making is currently being documented on Facebook.
I'll be showing the Painting the Poets collection at the Kendal Poetry Festival this year. 23rd - 26th June
An honour to be painting the portrait Dame Jane Goodall DBE. Portrait sittings too place in 'lockdown' sessions via zoom.
Group show April 2022 (dates tbc) at The Chelsea Chelsea Arts Club
Tutor at Art Academy London, BA (HONS) in Contemporary Portraiture and the Self Portrait short courses.
Women in Frame in collaboration with Poet in the City as part of Venus Rising at Kings Place 2019. Exhibition & live event.
The Poets
National Portrait Gallery BP Award exhibition 2017
Editorial on the Painting the Poets collection in Studio International magazine
Editorial on Painting the Poets collection in the Kensington and Westminster paper 2020
Editorial on the Painting the Poets collection in Jackson Art
Article on "The Poets" portrait in the Mail on Sunday 2017 for the BP Portrait Award exhbiiton.
Interview on Painting the Poets collection in Sound Art Radio 2020 & 2021
"She's Gone". Ruth Borchard Self Portrait Prize 2017 Exhibition
"Glass Ceiling" Ruth Borchard Portrait Self Portrait Prize 2015 Exhibition
Mall Galleries exhbition, Art for Youth 2019
"Cunto" A Portrait Of Joelle Taylor, Pride in Art, annual LGBT+ exhibitions at Capital Group 2020
Recreating Archangel Michael by Guido Reni for the film director Katherine Brooks’ new movie 2015
A Portrait of HM Queen Elizabeth ll Commissioned by the Kennel Club 2013
