The Fat Stock Market 1933
Framed print from The Farmer’s Year written and engraved by
Clare Leighton, showing The Fat Stock Market at Thame to represent December
Clare Veronica Hope Leighton was born in London in 1898. Her parents encouraged Clare’s interest in painting and she attended classes at Brighton College of Art and then later at the Slade School of Fine Art in London. She is best known for her wood-engraving which she studied at the Central School of Arts and Crafts. She enjoyed portraying rural workers and in the 1930s, she moved to Monks Risborough, Buckinghamshire where she produced her three major works, ‘The Farmer’s Year’ (1933), ‘Four Hedges’ (1935) and ‘Country Matters’ (1937).
She was also known for her book illustrations and designs for stained glass windows. In 1939 she moved to the United States and died there in 1989.
In the museum library is an extract from the text accompanying the December engraving, describing the preparations for the show by both the farmers and their families and within the town.
“For days past, the minds of the farmers and their wives have been fixed on the Annual Fat Stock Show, for it is the last triumphant event of the year, the consummation of months of labour …”
The print is displayed in the side corridor, near the agricultural display and the text extract is on Shelf 16a in the library.
