72
Fig. 30. Margaret Clarke and her son David
Fig. 31. Margaret Clarke
Self Portrait
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Margaret Clarke was born and educated in Newry. In 1906 she was awarded a scholarship to
the DMSA, where she became one of Orpen’s star pupils, and won many prizes. Her fellow
students included Beatrice Glenavy, James Sleator, Kathleen Fox, LeoWhelan, Patrick Tuohy and
Harry Clarke, whom she married in 1915. Margaret excelled at portrait painting. Her dispas-
sionate, searching eye enabled her to reveal the deep nature, the “true self ” of the sitter, even
when painting her own family. She was commissioned to paint many notable figures of the times,
including Eamon De Valera, Dr. John Charles McQuaid and Dermod O’Brien (President of the
RHA). Strong-minded and independent, she particularly enjoyed the artistic and intellectual free-
dom of genre painting such as “The Ghost Sonate” (Ulster Museum)’ based on a play by Strind-
berg, or “Bathtime at the Creche” (National Gallery). Her outstanding ability as a draughtswom-
an can be appreciated in all her work. Like so many women artists she had to combine devotion
to her career with the care of her family, and after Harry’s death, with much of the responsibility
for the studios on a greatly reduced income. Genre paintings became a luxury rarely affordable.
In later life she loved to paint delightful, simple vases of flowers or scenes from theWicklow hills.
She died in Dublin in 1961.
Fiana Griffin
