Claire grew up in California, often drawing. An art teacher in middle school taught her how to shade to create the illusion of form and she has been drawing realistically since. She continued taking art classes through college while earning a business degree at the University of New Mexico. It wasn't enough. A few years after graduation, while working as a graphic designer, she sought classical instruction which brought her to study at the Art Institute of Florence in Italy. Here she began to throw herself into oil painting.