Robert Cleminson (1844 - 1903) was a renowned Victorian sporting artist best known for his realistic oil paintings of animals, particularly sporting dogs, Highland game, and deer set within dramatic Scottish highland landscapes. Active from around 1864 until his death, Cleminson developed a strong reputation for his exceptional brushwork and ability to capture realistic movement and atmosphere in his paintings. Cleminson's works are valued for combining Victorian sporting art with romantic Highland scenery, making him an important figure in 19th-century British animal and sporting painting traditions.
Cleminson was heavily influenced by Sir Edwin Landseer, Queen Victoria's favourite artist and creator of the famous painting The Monarch of the Glen. A royal red deer and two hinds observing a distant stag in a Highland scene reflects Landseer's influence, particularly in its majestic depiction of Highland deer and atmospheric scenery.
He exhibited many paintings at the British Institution in London (a rival institution to the Royal Academy), and at the Society of British Artists in Suffolk Street, London. His Highland paintings were popular during his lifetime, due to the resurgence in interest in the Highlands, including due to Royal Family and Balmoral Castle interest and his paintings continue to be very popular to the present time.