Donald Louis Clausen's Obituary
Donald Louis Clausen, 89, of Piedmont/Oakland, CA, passed away peacefully on January 7, 2020. He was born August 3, 1930, in San Francisco, CA to Henry C. and Irene M. Clausen.
After serving in the Marines, Don attended Sacramento City College, then in 1956 enrolled and eventually graduated from California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, CA.
He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Charlotte deHay Clausen, his previous (second) wife Karen Zorich and his children Eric Christian Clausen, Renee Janice Clausen, Amber Farleigh Clausen, Christian Scott Clausen, Laurel Eileen Clausen and Sarah Elizabeth (Clausen) Maze, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Don was a passionate artist all his life. He started out with his animal drawings for children while attending art school. He then went on to his more abstract “boat paintings” and finally settled on abstract expressionism. His idea of a vacation was carving wood sculptures. He showed his art for many years at the De Tours Gallery and Maiden Lane Gallery in San Francisco, Zantmans in Carmel, Alta Galleria in Berkeley and had art shows in Grand Rapids Michigan in 2016 and 2019, plus various other galleries and shows over the years. One of his paintings is on the label of the 1986 Kenwood “artist series” Cabernet Sauvignon. Don had supported himself as a full-time artist since the 1960s.
There will be a Memorial/Celebration of Life for family and friends on February 29, 2020, at 2PM, at his house.
What’s your fondest memory of Donald ?
What’s a lesson you learned from Donald ?
Share a story where Donald 's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Donald you’ll never forget.
How did Donald make you smile?