Clara M. Burd (1873–1933)

Clara Miller Burd was born in New York City. She studied art at the National Academy of Design and the William Merritt Chase School in New York. She won a medal of achievement from the latter at age 19 in 1892. In 1898, she traveled to Paris, where she studied under Gustave Courtois at the Académie Colorossi and portrait painting with Renardo. When she returned to New York, she was hired as an artist and designer of stained glass at the Louis Comfort Tiffany Studios. She also worked at the J&R Lamb Company and at the Church Glass & Decoration Company. She designed many church windows, and often painted mural decorations for churches. She also became much sought-after as an illustrator of literary classics and children's books. She also designed magazine covers for many major early 20th-century publications, including Literary Digest, Woman’s Home Companion, Canadian Home-Journal, Farmer’s Wife, Modern Priscilla, and Women’s World.