Clare Spooner is a visual artist living and working in New York City. Her abstract Rotunda painting was featured as one of our 2024 12 Gifts of Hooville partners. Clare shared some stories about her UVA days and her path to become a fulltime artist.
Tell us a little bit about how Lucy Clare Spooner Studios started.
Despite a psychology and French double major, UVA had a major influence on the start of my business and in taking the leap to paint full-time! After taking a fantastic drawing course my last semester with Pam Black, I moved to NYC to work in interior design, continuing to draw constantly and staying in touch with Pam, who encouraged (and continues to encourage) me in my artistic path. I then took my love of learning and studied painting at a wonderful program in Aix-en-Provence, France (the Leo Marchutz School of Painting and Drawing) in between design jobs. Upon returning to the States, I sat and painted the Rotunda on a trip to Charlottesville and sent the painting into the UVA Instagram to feature it for fun after seeing another artist’s work featured. A few weeks later, I opened my Instagram to a flood of notifications and painting requests: @uva had posted my piece and seemingly everyone wanted a painting! I was in the middle of a client meeting, fielding questions on Instagram and figuring it out on the fly. That experience was a building block of proof that I could–maybe, perhaps, possibly, potentially–be able to make it work to paint full-time, and I left my salaried job less than a year later to do just that.
When you’re back on Grounds, what’s the one place you must visit?
I love sitting on the Lawn and making a painting of the Rotunda and the passers-by. Can’t miss the gardens, either; my favorites are 3, 5, and 10.
What is your favorite UVA memory?
There was an especially beautiful, warm day early in spring of my fourth year, and I had the time to just lounge on the Lawn. I also sledded down the steps of the Rotunda one year when it snowed and snowed and snowed, but maybe I shouldn’t admit to that!!
What’s one thing you learned at UVA that you carry with you today?
The importance of remaining curious.
How do you stay connected to UVA?
I’m lucky that the Virginia Club of NYC (the alumni club in NYC) is so thriving; I’ve been on the board for several years (since 2017) and chair two committees (STUDIO, the arts affiliate group, of course, and Hoos in Entrepreneurship). I’m also on the Arts Council board in Charlottesville, which works closely with the University to grant gifts to really deserving programs directly affecting the arts and students. And I return to dear Charlottesville as often as I can.