Robin Jon Hawes Clark CNZM FRS (16 February 1935 – 6 December 2018) was a New Zealand-born chemist initially noted for research of transition metal and mixed-valence complexes, and later for the use of Raman spectroscopy in determining the chemical composition of pigments used in artworks.

[3][4][5] In 1992, Clark was asked to develop a non-destructive technique to analyze the chemical composition of a painting in such a way to be able to spot art forgeries.

He had since developed the use of Raman spectroscopy as an important tool for use in the fields of artwork authentication, conservation, and preservation.

[9] Clark was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2004 Queen's Birthday Honours, for services to science and New Zealand interests in the United Kingdom,[10] followed by elections as a foreign fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, India in 2007 and as an international member of the American Philosophical Society in 2010.

[1] In 2009, Royal Society of Chemistry awarded Clark the Sir George Stokes Award for his contribution to the application of analytical science to the arts and archaeology through his development of Raman microscopy for the identification of pigments.