Student Fashion

Clara Donald

The Prize Finalist 2025 - Clara Donald
The Prize Finalist 2025 - Clara Donald Piece

My Heritage

Clara, a London-based artist and Royal School of Needlework graduate, specialises in hand embroidery. Combining traditional techniques with expressive ink drawings, she translates fluid mark-making into thread and fabric. Her tactile, richly expressive works blur the boundaries between fine art and textile craft, merging innovation with a deep respect for tradition.

My Heritage draws inspiration from time spent in Scotland with her family, reflecting both the striking beauty and the stark, unforgiving aspects of the Scottish landscape. One of her earliest influences was a detailed painting of a Scottish thistle in her grandfather’s home, inscribed with: “Thistle wild, proud and free, blooming where none dare to be.” This sparked a deeper exploration of Scotland’s flora and fauna.

Mentor: Beatrice Korlekie Newman

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