Margaret Clausen
- Artist: Thomas Stirling Lee
- Date: exhibited 1908
- Medium: Marble
- Dimensions: object: 540 x 267 x 222 mm
- Museum: Tate Britain
- Collection record: Tate Britain website
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About this artwork
This is the *Margaret Clausen* by Thomas Stirling Lee, a marble portrait sculpture created around 1907–08. The figure sits in a relaxed pose, head slightly turned, her face rendered with careful attention to features that give the work a quiet dignity. Lee’s hands sculpt the drapery of her clothing, and the smooth surface of the marble echoes the calm light that illuminates the piece from the gallery wall.
The sculpture was exhibited at the International Society in the Fair Women exhibition in February–March 1908 and was presented by Sir George Clausen in 1929. Margaret Clausen, the subject, was the elder daughter of the painter Sir George Clausen and later married muralist Thomas Derrick. She lived to the age of sixty‑one, passing away in 1946.
In size terms the work measures approximately 21 ¼ × 10 ½ × 8 ¾ inches (54 × 26½ × 22 cm), a modest height that invites viewers to approach closely and admire the details. Lee’s choice of marble gives the portrait a lasting, luminous quality that feels both classical and personal.
See it in person
Margaret Clausen is in the collection of Tate Britain on Millbank, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
