Linda St. Clair
Encyclopedia
Linda St. Clair is an American contemporary wildlife painter. She is best known for her portrayal of vibrant roosters, cows, and other barnyard, domestic and wild animals. Her work has been acclaimed for its ability to capture an animal's attitude and personality. Themes of pride, love and motherhood are found in her works.
and spent most of her childhood on a small farm in College Grove, Tennessee
as one of four children of Sarah and Alvin White. As a child growing up on a farm, she developed an affinity for animals and nature, and an intimate familiarity with rural life. The young St. Clair spent hours outdoors, observing the behaviors of a spectrum of animals, including the farm’s dairy cows, chickens and sheep.
and later to Santa Fe
to allow Dean to pursue his art career. St. Clair was not painting at the time, but absorbed the artistic environment around her. “I went to galleries … even memorized details about other artists’ lives,” she said. “I was smitten with the art bug, but still too scared to pick up a brush.”
In 1985, short of money, the couple moved to Dallas, exaswhere St. Clair began working in marketing, selling artists’ services to ad agencies. She ran her own marketing company for seven years. During the evenings, she would visit her husband’s studio and learned to paint. She took workshops with well-known artists and learned the fundamentals of painting from Dean. Her first paintings were landscapes and still lifes. Animals didn’t enter St. Clair’s artwork until 1992 when she painted a rooster from a photograph that Dean had taken. It would become her first sold piece. Soon she was painting cows, sheep and horses and gaining interest from collectors and galleries worldwide.
In 1999, the couple moved to southern Colorado
where they lived on an 80-acre farm, produced art and rode horses together. When Dean died in 2003, St. Clair returned to Santa Fe where she continues to reside.
To get a clearer perspective of an animal’s spirit, St. Clair travels frequently to find and photograph them. She’s travelled to the North Pole
to study polar bears, Africa
to observe elephants and zebras, and Yellowstone National Park
to watch grizzly bears.
Linda credits some of the appeal of her paintings to the need to return to a more simple time and reconnect with the earth. St. Clair believes that we have much to learn from animals, and her love and respect for these animals is made clear through her work.
and her work has been featured in several galleries across the United States and abroad. She is also a member of the Southwestern Watercolor Society and the Oil Painters of America, and has exhibited nationally at such shows as the Buffalo Bill Art Show in Cody, Wyoming, the Audubon Artists Annual Exhibition in New York, and the Salmagundi Club in New York.
She is a two-time recipient of the Grumbacher Gold Medal and her art has earned a place in the permanent collection of the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin
and University of Texas at Austin
. Collectors include Walt Disney
Corporation President Michael Mendenhall
, Bill Marriot of Marriot Hotels and Senator Alan Simpson of Wyoming.
Early years
Linda St. Clair was born in Franklin, TennesseeFranklin, Tennessee
Franklin is a city within and the county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 62,487 as of the 2010 census Franklin is located approximately south of downtown Nashville.-History:...
and spent most of her childhood on a small farm in College Grove, Tennessee
College Grove, Tennessee
College Grove is an unincorporated town near Franklin and Murfreesboro in Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. College Grove is predominantly rural....
as one of four children of Sarah and Alvin White. As a child growing up on a farm, she developed an affinity for animals and nature, and an intimate familiarity with rural life. The young St. Clair spent hours outdoors, observing the behaviors of a spectrum of animals, including the farm’s dairy cows, chickens and sheep.
Professional Life
As a teenager, she attended College Grove High School where her guidance councilor informed her that her career choices should be limited to secretary, teacher or nurse. After high school, St. Clair yearned for a taste of the larger world, and planned to move to Atlanta to study interior design. Instead, in 1970, Linda married her high school sweetheart and the couple had one son before divorcing in 1979. In 1987, St. Clair married illustrator and fine-art painter Dean St. Clair. In 1983, the couple moved to AlbuquerqueAlbuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
and later to Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
to allow Dean to pursue his art career. St. Clair was not painting at the time, but absorbed the artistic environment around her. “I went to galleries … even memorized details about other artists’ lives,” she said. “I was smitten with the art bug, but still too scared to pick up a brush.”
In 1985, short of money, the couple moved to Dallas, exaswhere St. Clair began working in marketing, selling artists’ services to ad agencies. She ran her own marketing company for seven years. During the evenings, she would visit her husband’s studio and learned to paint. She took workshops with well-known artists and learned the fundamentals of painting from Dean. Her first paintings were landscapes and still lifes. Animals didn’t enter St. Clair’s artwork until 1992 when she painted a rooster from a photograph that Dean had taken. It would become her first sold piece. Soon she was painting cows, sheep and horses and gaining interest from collectors and galleries worldwide.
In 1999, the couple moved to southern Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
where they lived on an 80-acre farm, produced art and rode horses together. When Dean died in 2003, St. Clair returned to Santa Fe where she continues to reside.
Style
Influenced by artists of the Southwest, St. Clair began exploring a greater variety of approaches in her own work. She began using loser brush strokes and bolder colors to convey the illusion of detail and a more contemporary perspective than earlier works. “I love the yin and yang of painting,” St. Clair said. “I love contrasting very transparent, thin paint with thick textured paint; the contrast of warm and cool colors, narrow and wide strokes, dark and light.” Linda’s style continues to be marked by strong colors and loose brushwork, relying on her knowledge of animal anatomy to create portraits that conjure a creature’s nature as much as its appearance. Most of St. Clair’s paintings are completed in one sitting at her studio.To get a clearer perspective of an animal’s spirit, St. Clair travels frequently to find and photograph them. She’s travelled to the North Pole
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
to study polar bears, Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
to observe elephants and zebras, and Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
to watch grizzly bears.
Linda credits some of the appeal of her paintings to the need to return to a more simple time and reconnect with the earth. St. Clair believes that we have much to learn from animals, and her love and respect for these animals is made clear through her work.
Collections
St. Clair’s paintings are commissioned for public and private collections in the United States and internationally. She is a member of the Society of Animal Artists in New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and her work has been featured in several galleries across the United States and abroad. She is also a member of the Southwestern Watercolor Society and the Oil Painters of America, and has exhibited nationally at such shows as the Buffalo Bill Art Show in Cody, Wyoming, the Audubon Artists Annual Exhibition in New York, and the Salmagundi Club in New York.
She is a two-time recipient of the Grumbacher Gold Medal and her art has earned a place in the permanent collection of the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin
Wausau, Wisconsin
Wausau is a city in and the county seat of Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States. The Wisconsin River divides the city. The city is adjacent to the town of Wausau.According to the 2000 census, Wausau had a population of 38,426 people...
and University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
. Collectors include Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
Corporation President Michael Mendenhall
Michael Mendenhall
Michael Mendenhall is senior vice president and chief marketing officer of HP.Previously, he was executive vice president of global marketing for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, the division of The Walt Disney Company that operates nine theme parks at four sites around the world...
, Bill Marriot of Marriot Hotels and Senator Alan Simpson of Wyoming.