Oliver Clare (1853–1927) Still Life of Blossom & Bird’s Nest British Victorian Oil Painting c.1880–1890

Oliver Clare (1853–1927) Still Life of Blossom & Bird’s Nest British Victorian Oil Painting c.1880–1890

An exceptionally detailed signed Victorian woodland still life by Oliver Clare, depicting pink and white blossom surrounding a bird’s nest with four blue eggs, with historic Haynes Fine Art provenance.

Highlights

• Original British Victorian oil painting by Oliver Clare (1853–1927)

• Signed “Oliver Clare” lower right

• Circa 1880–1890

• Oil on canvas

• Pink and white blossom upon a richly detailed mossy woodland bank

• Bird’s nest containing four striking blue eggs

• Colour and clutch size suggestive of the European Starling

• Historic F.R. registered-stock label verso

• Haynes Fine Art of Broadway label, stock no. 3463

• Historically recorded by Haynes Fine Art as 8 × 10 inches

• Private eastern shire collection

• Golding Young & Mawer, Lincoln Fine Art Sale, 5 February 2025, Lot 113

• Housed in an ornate gilt openwork frame

• A characteristic example of Clare’s celebrated bird’s-nest and mossy-bank compositions

Introduction

An enchanting late Victorian still life by the noted British painter Oliver Clare, combining delicate blossom with one of the artist’s most recognisable recurring subjects: a bird’s nest concealed amongst the vegetation of a mossy woodland bank.

White and soft pink blossom emerges from a densely worked background of moss, leaves and crossing branches. Clare constructs the scene through minute variations of colour, light and texture, creating the impression of a miniature woodland environment rather than a conventional studio still life.

At the lower right rests a carefully constructed nest containing four luminous blue eggs. Their cool colour provides an immediate contrast with the deep greens, earthy browns and warmer pinks surrounding them.

The result is intimate and remarkably immersive. The viewer seems not merely to observe a collection of botanical specimens but to discover a hidden fragment of the Victorian countryside at close quarters.

Catalogue Details

Artist: Oliver Clare (1853–1927)

Title: Still Life of Blossom and a Bird’s Nest

Date: Circa 1880–1890

School: British

Period: Victorian / late 19th century

Medium: Oil on canvas

Signature: Signed “Oliver Clare” lower right

Subject: Pink and white blossom, foliage and moss surrounding a bird’s nest containing four blue eggs

Frame: Ornate gilt openwork frame

Catalogue Note

Bird’s nests, flowers and moss-covered banks form an established and recurrent part of Oliver Clare’s oeuvre.

Numerous documented paintings combine essentially the same elements as the present work. Recorded titles include Apple Blossom and a Bird’s Nest, Still Life of Primroses and Bird’s Nest, Primroses, Apple Blossoms and Bird’s Nest, Flowers and Bird’s Nest by a Mossy Bank and several variations upon Still Life of Flowers and Bird’s Nest.

Several documented examples measure 8 × 10 inches, corresponding with the dimensions entered on the historic Haynes Fine Art label attached to the reverse of this painting.

A particularly relevant comparison is Clare’s Primroses and Birds’ Nests on a Mossy Bank, signed and dated 1882. Another recorded bird’s-nest composition dates from 1890. These works provide useful comparative support for the present circa 1880–1890 dating.

The bird’s-nest subject also belongs to a wider Clare-family tradition. Oliver’s father, George Clare, painted fruit, flowers and bird’s-nest studies, while his brother Vincent Clare likewise became a still-life painter.

The Bird’s Nest and Four Blue Eggs

One of the most engaging elements is the clutch of four intensely blue eggs.

Their relatively uniform, largely unmarked blue colouring and clutch size are suggestive of the European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris).

This provides an interesting ornithological interpretation of Clare’s subject but should not be regarded as a definitive species identification. No documentary evidence has been identified recording the bird Clare intended to portray, and an artistic representation need not reproduce every ornithological characteristic precisely.

The work is therefore formally catalogued as depicting a bird’s nest containing four blue eggs, possibly representative of a Starling clutch.

The Artist

Oliver Clare was a British still-life painter associated particularly with Birmingham and belonged to an accomplished family of Victorian artists.

His father George Clare established a reputation for highly finished paintings of fruit, flowers and bird’s nests. Oliver’s brother Vincent Clare also pursued still-life painting.

Although no definitive documentary record of Oliver attending a particular formal art school has yet been established, the close technical and stylistic relationship between Oliver and George Clare strongly suggests that much of Oliver’s early artistic education took place within the family environment.

Oliver developed an exceptionally meticulous approach to painting. Fruit, petals, leaves, moss and other natural details were rendered through highly controlled handling, producing the finely finished surfaces for which his work became known.

Rather than restricting himself to conventional tabletop arrangements, Clare frequently placed fruit and flowers within mossy banks and hedgerows, transforming the traditional still life into an intimate study of the natural environment.

He exhibited during his career at important British institutions including the Royal Academy and Royal Society of British Artists at Suffolk Street, as well as exhibitions in Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester.

Clare also undertook commercial artistic work, producing still-life designs reproduced as promotional postcards and posters.

His paintings remain represented in public collections and continue to be collected internationally.

Provenance

Historic F.R. registered-stock label attached verso, identifying the artist as Oliver Clare and recording the title Still Life of Blossom and a Bird’s Nest.

Haynes Fine Art of Broadway, The Bindery Galleries, 69 High Street, Broadway, Worcestershire; stock no. 3463; historic label verso identifying Oliver Clare and recording the picture as 8 × 10 inches.

Private eastern shire collection.

Golding Young & Mawer, Lincoln Fine Art Sale, 5 February 2025, Lot 113, catalogued as Oliver Clare, Still Life of Blossom and a Bird’s Nest.

Acquired by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®.

The surviving historic labels have been retained on the reverse as part of the painting’s documented history.

Dimensions

Framed:

Height: 33 cm
Width: 38.5 cm
Depth: 5 cm

Golding Young & Mawer recorded the painting itself as approximately 18.5 × 23.5 cm.

The historic Haynes Fine Art label records the picture as 8 × 10 inches.

Minor differences between historic measurements can result from differing methods of recording the canvas, sight size or framed dimensions.

Condition Report

Offered in good presentable antique condition commensurate with age.

The canvas has previously been relined.

There is extensive age-related craquelure throughout the painted surface together with areas of surface wear and other characteristics consistent with a late 19th-century oil painting.

The ornate gilt frame displays age-related rubbing, chips, small losses and general surface wear.

The frame complements the painting particularly well but is not represented as being original to the work.

Please examine the extensive close-up photographs carefully, as these form an integral part of the condition description.

Worldwide Shipping

Worldwide shipping is available.

The painting will be professionally packed using appropriate protective materials for safe transportation.

International deliveries are normally dispatched using established tracked courier services. Buyers are responsible for any applicable customs duties or import taxes in their destination country.

Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution

The painting will be accompanied by a Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD® Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution recording our catalogue attribution and relevant provenance information held at the date of sale.

Attribution and Research

This catalogue entry has been prepared following examination of the painting, signature, historic labels and available documentary evidence.

Comparative research has included museum and public-collection records, established fine-art dealers, professional trade organisations, specialist Clare-family research and historical auction records.

Particular consideration has been given to documented Oliver Clare compositions incorporating flowers, bird’s nests and mossy banks, including examples sharing the 8 × 10-inch format historically recorded for the present painting.

The possible identification of the eggs as those of a European Starling is presented as an interpretation rather than an established fact.

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