Biography / Professional Information

Claire Clark's artistic career centered upon figurative sculpture. Most of her work originated from observations of the model, using clay to build shapes structurally with feelings of the model and glazes with oxides for emphasis. Her work is easily recognized by her unique use of clay, keeping a hollow shell, using no armature.

Claire’s parents, Mike and Kate Radoslovich, were both architects. She and her younger surviving sister, Maria Cox, grew up in Forest Hills. Claire started her art at an early age. As a family, they did watercolors together on summer vacations. Claire first discovered ceramics in a high school class. Here she was able to fire and glaze her small sculptures. She also took weekend classes at the Museum of Modern Art. She became more involved with painting at The Art Students League of New York, first studying with Howard Trafton and then with Harry Sternberg and afterwards studying sculpture with John Hovannis. She also later worked at the Museum of Modern Art in a non-resident term.

At Bennington College, Claire studied painting, sculpture and etching. It is there she became more drawn to sculpture. After Bennington College, Ms. Clark went to Cranbrook Academy of Art as a sculpture major.

There she worked abstractly. There were very few models and so she started really building with terra cotta. At this time, she was also welding, learning ceramics and throwing on the wheel, doing etching and dry point and wood and stone carving. Her subjects were figurative.

Soon afterwards, Claire went to the University of Oregon in Eugene where she was a graduate assistant in sculpture to dentists. Most of Claire’s work originated from observations of the model, using clay to build shapes structurally with feelings of the model and glazes with oxides for emphasis.

Later Claire attended Teachers College in New York and studied to be a high school teacher. She started her teaching career in January 1966 and she continued to work with the NYC Board of Education for 25 years. While teaching, Claire took up acting as a relaxation activity.

Claire retired from teaching in 1991 and dedicated herself to sculpture. She started with an armature and then decided not to ever use one again. Her familiarity with clay helped her build figures without an armature.

After 2 years of studying full time again, Claire won a McDowell Traveling Scholarship. She went to Rome and visited Naples, Sienna, and Florence in Italy. She did stone carving at the American Academy of Rome with Simon Verite. She assisted Mr. Verite with a fountain design at the Villa Aurelia Garden in Rome.

Claire continued to show her work at The Pen and Brush Club, Professional Sculptors Guild, Visual Individualists United, Artists Craftsman of New York, and Burr Artists. She had a one-man show at the Art Students League for her McDowell scholarship. At the league, she also won a Nessa Cohen scholarship. Claire relocated to Ponte Vedra Beach, FL in 2009 and remained there until her passing.

Click the link below to see Claire’s full resume:

Claire Clark Resume