[2] Clarke began working as an educator in her home town in 1978, which provided her with a solid base from which to develop her career in promoting and supporting South-East Aboriginal histories, culture and knowledge.
[3] In 1996, Clarke curated, with Kimba Thompson and Len Tregonning, the We Iri We Homeborn Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Festival.
[6] Her work has seen her become a pivotal figure in the reclamation of cultural and artistic practices of South Eastern Australian Aboriginal peoples.
[7][3] Her work has included eel traps, kopis, possum skin cloak-making, and kangaroo tooth necklaces (Thung-ung Coorang).
[9] In 2023, Clarke won the Melbourne Prize for Urban Sculpture,[10] "for her recent experimental work in glass as well as the pivotal role she has played in the Victorian Indigenous art scene over the past three decades".