The National Sporting Library and Museum offers an exhibit of the equestrian works of Clarice Smith — Power & Grace — until September 28. "The show focuses on Clarice's equestrian works, which reflect her experiences with her husband Robert who bred Thoroughbred racehorses at Heronwood Farm in Upperville," said Claudia Pfeiffer, the George L. Ohrstrom Jr Curator of Sporting Art. "A lot of the pieces in the exhibit are from Clarice Smith's private collection. That's what's so very special about Power & Grace. The full range of Clarice's equestrian paintings isn't well known and we are thrilled to offer people this rare opportunity to enjoy these paintings at the National Sporting Library & Museum."

"I paint my life," said the artist quite candidly, but the true meaning of Clarice Smith's words requires those stunning moments when you first stand in a gallery where her paintings just about explode off the walls. What she captures is quite like that moment at the beginning of a horse race when the gates burst open or the tapes fly up and Thoroughbred racehorses take off. Clarice Smith paints with unbridled passion to express the horse's energy and spirit and yet she is equally skillful at portraying equines during their almost surreal moments of tranquility and peace.

Not exactly a sporting artist in the tradition of Jean Bowman or Richard Stone Reeves, Clarice brings a very personal and contemporary interpretation to recreate a dramatic moment, usually related to racing, in a way that transcends the boundaries of the canvas so that her paintings become larger than life in your mind's eye. Yes, Clarice Smith is that good.

Moreover, she's "local" by adoption. In 1983 Clarice and her husband, Robert H. Smith, a prominent real estate developer and philanthropist, purchased Grafton Farm, home of the Upperville Horse Show, and renamed it Heronwood Farm. For 30 years they maintained the show grounds and in August 2013, four years after the passing of her husband, Clarice donated that land to the Upperville Horse Show. Recently, Clarice created a lovely field stone memorial dedicated to her late husband in the shade of the trees planted by Mr. Smith on the west end of the main hunter ring, a place ideal to relax and enjoy the unique ambience of the historical show.

Clarice's desire to be an artist dates to childhood when, only eight, she visited the National Gallery of Art's newly opened "West Building" where she found herself drawn to Homer Winslow's rich, earthy watercolors. In the Power & Grace Exhibit at NSLM, one painting in particular reflects Winslow's style even as it captures her husband's love of the horses they bred at Heronwood: Paddock Rendezvous (1991) oil on canvas, shows a man standing at a fence, the horses lined up to greet him.

Her artistic dreams yielded to her mother's encouragement to learn skills, just in case: she worked summers in the Navy Department and studied Home Economics at the University of Maryland. She married Robert and delayed finishing college to give birth to the first of their three children. When she returned to academia, Clarice enrolled at the Corcoran College of Art, but soon discovered that she craved more technical education. She earned her bachelor's degree and her Master of Fine Arts at George Washington University where, from 1980 to 1987, she taught portraiture and watercolor.

Known best for her variety of subjects, which include portraits, florals, and landscapes, Clarice has been showcased in more than 30 exhibitions at national and international museums and galleries. She received ongoing inspiration from horses at Heronwood and traveling with her husband to Newmarket in England, Deauville in France and to various race meets in the US.

"The exhibition reflects Clarice's experiences and impressions wherever she and her husband went in their equestrian life," said Pfeiffer. "We divided the paintings into three sections: the farm, racing, and behind the scenes. Together, the works represent the deep and full range of Clarice's expression as a contemporary artist with a strong background in portraiture. From the tranquility of Horse Huddle, 2009, to the heady action of the determined horses in Dead Heat, 1999, the viewer is continually drawn back to the horses' eyes, their expressions so well-captured."

In the course of developing the material and the catalog for the exhibition, Pfeiffer interviewed the artist several times. "I feel so privileged to have been able to spend time with Clarice. Her openness, easy wit, and willingness to share her story, her motivations and artistic techniques brought a much more personal understanding of her as an artist and an even greater appreciation for her work. As the title of the exhibit — Clarice Smith: Power & Grace — implies, there is not only an intriguing balance between power and grace in Clarice smith's work, but within the artist herself."

For more information, please visit: www.nsl.org