Handmade Decorative Art
Robin Clark - Artist
Minden, Nevada
About Me . . . . .
My name is Robin Clark and I live in Minden, Nevada. I grew up in Minnesota with 2 brothers and 2 sisters. When I was 9 years old my parents decided to move us all to California only not in a very conventional way. They wanted to go in a covered wagon. So in 1965 they packed us all up and the 7 of us traveled all the way to Fallbrook, California in a covered wagon. (Yes, we have published our story, although we have only distributed it amongst our family members as a legacy to our children and grandchildren).
1965
Minnesota to California
The Folin Family
One of the memories from growing up and traveling in the covered wagon was that we had very little money. So from the age of 14 I have been working in one job or another trying to earn a dollar. I worked as a maid at a hotel, checking and stocking shelves in a grocery store, painted signs, designed and drew house plans, sold Mary Kay products, worked in the printing industry for 25 years, spent 10 years working and volunteering in a private school, and was a single mom for many years. It certainly didn’t leave me much time to pursue my love for the arts.
In 2011 (19 years into our marriage), my husband retired from his job and we decided to make a big move to be closer to our oldest daughter and 5 of our 7 grandchildren. In 2012 we sold our home of 20 years and moved to Minden, Nevada.
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Being retired and having more time on my hands then I knew what to do with I was finally able to take some art classes, make crafts, paint and so many other things. I started by taking a watercolor painting class at the local college then added different art media classes as my creative juices began to flow. Apparently “the west” got in my blood somewhere along the way between the covered wagon trip in 1965 and moving to Nevada because the art I make now is mostly western themed.
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About My Artwork . . . . .
Through many trials and errors I finally developed an art form I am finding that nobody has ever seen. Most people think it is leather (one person even thought it was some sort of beef jerky). All of my products are handmade using clay and various stains, paints, inks, etc. to create the final piece of art that looks like leather. I start with frames, boxes and miscellaneous background materials that are recycled. I purchase the various foundation pieces from local second hand stores, yard/garage sales and estate sales. I create a piece of art with clay to fit the size of the recycled item, I then refurbish the foundation piece. Every piece I make is a ONE OF A KIND. I may use the same saying but there are no 2 pieces exactly alike.
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The majority of my work is western themed but I also do some various “every day” home décor pieces and I am always open for doing custom work. I have sold over 400 works of art and will continue to create as I find just the right foundation piece.