OLIVER CLARE
British, 1853-1927

Still-Life with Grapes, Gooseberries, Yellow Apples, Peaches and Strawberries

Oil on artist's panel | signed lower right "Oliver Clare"

15 1/4" H x 2 1/2" D x 18 1/4" W [frame]
11 1/4" H x 14 1/4" W [panel]

A finely painted still-life by Oliver Clare, the very well-regarded Victorian painter of still-life scenes known for his complex arrangements of fruits in naturalistic settings. The present example is a brilliantly textured and detailed scene depicting a cluster of purple grapes front and center spilling over a collection of Yellow Apples, the grape leaves and vine intertwined in the background before two peaches. A trio of strawberries are situated in the front and a scattered collection of gooseberries shine with their translucent skins in the right corner. It is signed in the lower right corner and is housed in what is likely the first frame for it, a wonderful pierced giltwood example that is typical on his work.

Born to the still-life artist George Clare in 1853, Oliver Clare and his brother Vincent both pursued a very distinct and individual specialization in unusually precise, intricately detailed and finely finished still-life scenes, mostly of fruit and flowers. Together with his brother, Oliver studied under his father and developed heavily on the intricate textured stippling techniques of George Clare; he is generally considered to be the best painter from the Clare family. He exhibited extensively at the Royal Society of Birmingham Artists, showing no less than eighteen paintings there over the course of his career. While he spent most of his life in Birmingham, he spent the late 1870s and early 1880s living in London where exhibited between 1873 and 1883 at least two paintings the Royal Society of British Artists (Suffolk Street) and one at the Royal Academy. He further exhibited at the the Walker Art Gallery of Liverpool and the Manchester City Art Gallery.

Artist Listings & Bibliography:

• E. Benezit Dictionary of Artists, Vol. III, p. 1062
• A Dictionary of Artists who have exhibited works in the Principal London Exhibitions from 1760 to 1893, Algernon Graves, Kingsmead, 1973, p. 54
• Dictionary of British Art, Vol. IV, Victorian Painters: The Text, Christopher Wood, 1995, p. 100

Condition Report:
Surface has not been cleaned by our conservator. Presents with minor surface grime and several dark specks on the leaves and grapes and right edge that probably were old inpainting that have since discolored. A faint surface scratch extends from the grapes into the apples left of them. Relatively bright and clear, though it would benefit moderately by being cleaned. Frame with rubbing and relief wear, numerous cracks to the gesso and wood substrate, including some losses to the gesso.

ref. 503VSA06M