C.D. Clarke was born in Rochester, NY and received his BFA in painting from Syracuse University in 1981. Inspired by his life-long interest in the outdoors, he moved to the Eastern shore of Maryland in 1982 and lives on an island in the salt marshes of the Chesapeake Bay. His work reflects the world around him, and hunting and fishing scenes, comprise the subjects for a substantial portion of his work. He has traveled extensively painting in the Caribbean, Scotland, England, Hawaii, the Bahamas, Canada, Alaska, Montana and South America. His work captures the feeling, and most importantly, the light of sparkling bonefish flats, misty Scottish salmon rivers, raw windy marshes, icy Chilean Andes and warm, sunny Argentinean pampas. Artist’s Statement “I have always had two strong interests: art and the outdoors. I started out in college going for the outdoors end in a program that would have put me into the Forestry School at Syracuse University. After one semester, I realized that forestry was chemistry and math, so I turned to art. I did nothing for three years but paint. It didn’t matter how the paintings turned out; I just did them. That’s when I learned to enjoy the process of watercolor and also everything I could about landscape. I got a lot out of Syracuse University, but none of my knowledge that I use now as a landscape painter came from college, other than basic drawing skills. All of my knowledge of light and how things would be recorded and responded to in the outdoors came from those years of working en plein-aire. That’s the most important thing an artist can do. What you learn about light in color in the field is indispensable. There was such an evolution in my work as I was painting outdoors because a year later it all seemed like garbage, so I wouldn’t even want it included in my body of work. I was doing hundreds of watercolors a year. I was frequently doing two a day and I can remember days when I would do four. I still have a few pieces that I’ve kept, and there are a few in collections from those early years that I consider almost as good as I can do now. But they are one out of fifty, and the rest of that work is gone.” Selected Exhibitions: - Adirondack National Watercolor Exhibition, NY - American Museum of Fly Fishing, VT - Anglers Club of NY, NY - Deland Museum of Art, SD - Delaware Wildlife Exhibition, DE - Environmental Center at Airlie, VA - Gold Room at the Eastern Waterfowl Festival, MD - Holland & Holland, London - Hudson River Wildlife Festival, NY - Leash Club, NY - Masters of Wildlife Art Show, PA - Miami Rod and Reel Club, FL - Miami Museum of Science, FL - Mickelson Gallery, Washington DC - Mirimachi Land Reliance,MT - Peneinsula Regional Foundation, MD - Philadelphia Art Show, PA - Redbone Celebrity Tournament, Islamorada, FL - Salisbury State University, MD - Southeastern Wildlife Exposition, Charleston, SC - Southern Maryland Wildlife Exposition, MD - Thomasville Plantation Wildlife Art Show, GA - Theodore Gordon Fly Fishers, NY - Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art, MD - World Trade Buildings, Baltimore, MD Magazines featuring Chris’ work include: - Art Calendar Magazine - Fly Rod & Reel Magazine - Fly Fishing in Saltwaters - Field and Stream Magazine - Gray’s Sporting Journal - Pointing Dog Journal - Saltwater Fly Fishing - Saltwater Sportsman - Shooting Sportsman - Sporting Classics Magazine - Sporting Clays Magazine - U.S. Art Magazine - Wildlife Art Book and Publication Covers: - Along the Seaboard Side, MD Historic Trust - Marsh Tales, Tidewater Publishers - Silver Swimmer, Lyons & Burford - Somerset, An Architectural History, MD Historical Trust - Fly Fishing Alasksa’s Wild Rivers, Stackpole Books - Trout Bum, The Easton Press - The Book of the Tarpon, Meadow Run Press - The Tournament, Black River Books - Saltwater Software Memberships: - Atlantic Salmon Federation - American Museum of Fly Fishing - Quail Unlimited - Trout Unlimited - Ducks Unlimited - Ward Foundation of Wildfowl Art - Mirimachi Salmon Museum “Chris’ paintings are truly unique in that they convey motion in landscape. He uses a contemporary rendition of the impressionistic traditions of Winslow Homer and John Singer Sargent to invigorate your senses while giving a feeling of shared experience.” ---Katrin Pope, Director of Mickelson Gallery “If I had Clarke’s gift, I might be able to capture the complex mix of emotions…serenity, solitude, beauty, wonder, and delight.” ---Angus Phillips, Washington Post “Flooding paper with a dazzling interplay of water and color…the passion for sport stimulates [the artist]. This finely tuned interplay of art and sport are readily apparent in every dash, swash, stroke and pool of color Clarke applies.” ---Rebecca Rowland, Wildlife Art News “The freshness and spontaneity of his location work often pleases the collector too, some preferring to buy his on-the-scene sketches instead of studio paintings.” ---Anne Stenson, Star Democrat