Inside the tent, the soft glow of paraffin lamps drew lizards and insects towards the light. I watched them with fascination, feeling safely cocooned within my mosquito net. Mornings brought their own surprises: baboons perched mischievously on the Land Rover, and my father’s exasperation at discovering his leather briefcase had been chewed—most likely by hyenas.

We spent many years living in Narok, which in those days was little more than a single dirt road lined with a few dukas. I loved watching Maasai warriors in the market, standing tall beside their cattle, leaning on their spears as they chatted about life’s mysteries. My love of nature—and my deep curiosity about existence—began there, surrounded by grassy plains, rolling hills, rivers, abundant wildlife, and the vivid cultural mosaic of the people who called that landscape home.

Since then, I have been in constant awe of nature’s beauty and the vibrant diversity of human culture. I feel compelled to express the threads that weave nature and culture together, and to explore the inner and outer transformations of life through art. Creating art is, for me, a form of visual intimacy—an act of tasting the world with my eyes.

Largely self-taught, I work primarily with oils on canvas and copper. My practice is shaped by a deep appreciation for historical painting techniques: the layered Flemish methods of the old masters and the dramatic interplay of light and shadow in chiaroscuro, which together create the illusion of a three-dimensional world. When I paint, I hold these traditions in mind, using them to evoke sensuality, serenity, and mystery through the power of suggestion. From the initial spark of an idea to the final glaze, the entire process feels like a tranquil meditation.

Each artwork becomes a journey of its own, as was the case with my piece The Treasury. To create this painting, I lived among the Bedouin in the village of Sayhun, beside the caves of Petra in Jordan. Each day I rode my camel to the site to paint, navigating the dust, exchanging conversations with friends and passers-by, and contemplating the meaning of life along the way.

Clare Littleton spent her childhood in the Maasai Mara, Kenya, where she developed a deep appreciation for culture, community, and the natural world. At seven, she began travelling between Kenya and boarding school in England, later completing a degree in environmental, social, and cultural anthropology at the University of Wales.

Her career has been shaped by extensive field research and travel across Nepal, Tibet, Ethiopia, and Jordan. Clare eventually returned to Jordan to live among the Bedouin in the ancient city of Petra, further enriching her understanding of cultural heritage through art and photography.

For the past twenty years, Clare has established a successful hotel/villa business in Runaway Bay, Jamaica, which remains operational today.

Now based in West Wales, overlooking the Teifi River, Clare continues to develop her artistic practice. Her work invites viewers into evocative visual narratives inspired by a lifelong engagement with nature and diverse cultures.