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Robert Clunie (1895-1984)
“Grand Teton Mountain from Timber Island”
1940
Oil on canvas
36” H x 42” W (image size)
41.5” H x 47.5” W (frame size)
Signed lower right: Robert Clunie
Estimated value: $6,000 - $8,000
Artist Biography
Robert Clunie was born in 1895 in Renfrewshire, Scotland. He began painting outdoors in his native Scotland at the age of 13. Young Robert was accepted to the Royal Scottish Academy, but cancelled his enrollment to pursue a new life in America. Clunie and his brother arrived in the U.S. in 1911 and joined relatives in Saginaw, Michigan. Wanting to escape the cold Michigan winters, Clunie boarded a train to Pasadena, California in 1918. It was during this train journey that Clunie first saw and fell in love with the Sierra Nevada.
Arriving in Hollywood, Robert worked briefly at MGM painting film sets. When that work ended, he followed friends to the paint department of the American Beet Sugar Company in Oxnard. In 1919, Clunie married Myrtle Ireland of Santa Paula, where they bought a home not far from the city’s center. Robert Clunie made his first painting trip to the Sierra Nevada in 1928. For the next thirty years, Clunie made annual painting trips to upper Big Pine Canyon where he would paint from dawn until dusk. He was often visited by friends and other artists, including Edgar Payne. Passersby would purchase Clunie’s paintings fresh off the easel, and his monumental images of the Sierras and other mountainous regions continue to be just as sought after today.
Auction Information
The 15th Annual Fine Art Auction Fundraiser
Saturday, August 16, 2025
The silent auction starts at 3:00 PM.
The live auction starts at 4:00 PM.
Auction admission: $15.00 SPAM members, $20.00 Non-members
All proceeds benefit the Santa Paula Art Museum, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization #2478728.
All major credit cards, check, and cash are accepted.
Sales tax will be applied to all hammer prices. There is no buyer’s premium.