O.T. Clark Bristish painter Octavius Thomas Clark

Looking for information on painter OT Clark? Want to share your OTC with other fans? Do you have an old oil painting or a print (lithograph) thats been in the family for years? Send me a photo of your OTC with your name, where you live and how it was acquired and I will add it to this page. 

Page updated:   July 6, 2010

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PLEASE NOTE: I’m just a fan, an owner of an OT Clark and not an art dealer. I receive a lot of emails asking how much a print or painting may be worth. It depends on exactly what you have and who is willing to pay for it. Printed pictures may range from free hand-me-downs, $20 junk store finds to thousands of dollars for professionally restored oil paintings. Ebay and Craigslist are good locations to place your picture up for sale.

O.T. CLARK       Octavius Thomas Clark     BRITISH ARTIST

Born in Hoxton, New Town (just north of London, England) December 21, 1850. His father was a painter as were two of his older brothers.  At age 24 he married his wife Ellen (December 1874.) The 1881 census report describes him as a painter living in Islington, not far from Hoxton. His youngest son Stanley (born in 1887) also worked as an artist.  Octavius T Clark lived in or around east London between 1887 to the time of his death in 1921, Romford in Essex.

Genealogy information supplied courtesy of Michael Clark, Rye, East Sussex England. Dec. 2007

ot clark o.t. clark painting

A painting of English landscape was sold by a gallery for $4900.00 in 2003: oil on canvas of a large, extensive landscape signed by O.T. Clark. A painter of rural landscapes and cottages.

Paintings by OT Clark were probably set in the countryside of  Essex and Kent. They usually consisted of trees, pasture, thatched cottages, pond or river bank, ducks and cows, figures walking a rural lane.

The Popularity of “By A Country Lane”

From an internet search: at PuzzleHistory.com    Feb. 2004

"By a Country Lane"  A puzzle by Tuco Puzzles (possibly 1932-1957)
The poster writes: I believe I have the original painting that this puzzle was taken from - it measures 24 x 36 and it was framed by the Illinois Mounting Company - it has been in my family about 50 years - the signature is under the frame, but it does have a brass name plate with painting's name and artist - "O.T.CLARK".  (Puzzle box shown at left; puzzle is only a portion of the entire painting.)

Below is the full size print of the puzzle.

ot clark puzzle picture
ot clark octavius clark painting print o.t. clark

 Jody’s OT Clark “BY A COUNTRY LANE”

This is my very own OT Clark lithograph. It has been hanging in my house for 50 years.

ot clark signature

OT Clark signature

I have received many emails from people who think they have the original “By A Country Lane” because the printing process was meant to deceive. There were mass produced canvas type “paintings” that were screenprinted in color then hand brushed with a clear glaze that makes the “painting” appear to have been hand painted. This is much the way the lesser quality Thomas Kinkade paintings are made in abundance today. A closer look at the “By A Country Lane” I viewed, in the Minneapolis home of Vicky, showed a tiny ‘LITHO IN USA’ mark in the lower left hand corner. I believe Vicky’s “BACL” was printed in the 1960’s. She picked it up at a neighbors estate sale, primarily for its hand carved frame on which was written “made in Mexico.” Below is a cropped photo of Vicky’s “painting,” still much enjoyed despite it’s lithograph mark. It is much greener in tone than most of the other “BACL” photos I have seen and slightly larger than my own lithograph.

Vickys By A Country Lane O.T. Clark faux painting

Many of the “By A Country Lane” prints were produced by the Goes Litho Company of Chicago, IL in the 1940’s into the 1960’s. Most are larger wall “paintings” and the smallest I’ve been told of measured 12 x 9 inches.

Submit a photo of your OT Clark and share it here! My email is at the top of the page

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Other Paintings and Prints by Octavius T. Clark

Newest Addition: January 2010 from Bill in London

Octavius T. Clark, English painter, Sonning Bridge on the Thames River
OT Clark signature

artists signature, detail of  title

Bill inherited the painting above from his late father who acquired it in the 1920’s-1930’s. It is oil on wood, very large at nearly 5 by 3 feet. It is titled “Sonning Bridge and Church, Thames” and it’s dated 1894 just below the edge of the frame.

Two similar images of the Sonning Bridge, Sonning, England: left an engraving from 1799 and right, a print by Angley from the mid 1800’s.

Picture

 added March 6, 2009 from Charles B. of England

An English Homestead by O.T. Clark  CLICK for high resolution picture

Click on the photo to see a large close up of this painting

OT Clark dog painting detail border collie

Dec 2008: Charles B. of England sent me photos of his two OT Clark paintings. He acquired them from a friend who had them stored in an attic for 30 years. Charles had them professionally cleaned and the restorer has confirmed them as true OT Clark paintings. He said he has worked on OT Clark paintings in the past - these are the real thing! The painting above has “An English Homestead” written on the back edge in pencil, probably by the artist himself.

Dog lovers will be familiar with the farmers faithful dog, a border collie.

Click to see high resolution

Click on the photo to see a huge close up photo of this painting. Thank you Charles for high resolution pictures!

The painting above is called “Sunshine After Rain” as written in pencil on the back.

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Added: Oct. 3, 2009 from the Rosalie B. of South Africa

Purchased in 1910 from an auction house in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, it is in its beautiful original gold frame and is also titled “Sunshine After Rain” and is very similar to the one shown above. This is an original oil painting, certified by an art gallery. Thank you so much for sharing Rosalie! I had to edit it slightly because of the flash reflection. Find the differences.

O.T. Clark

May 2009, from Cathy D. of Canada:

On The Dart print by English painter Octavius Clark

Click on the photo to see a large close up picture

This aged, sepia print is titled “On The Dart” referring to the River Dart of Southern England. My guess is that it may be from the area near the towns of Totnes or Buckfastleigh as the river is narrower to the north, it then winds southward to the English Channel. If you have this picture or more information about it please contact me. Cathy would like to know more about it.

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May 2009, from Barry M. of  Leicestershire England

O.T. Clark early gouche painting

Click here or on the photo to see a large close up picture

This little gouache painting was sold on eBay UK by Barry M. and the winner of the auction was OT Clark collector and great-granddaughter of the artist, Marcia B. of Somerset, England. Marcia has other paintings shown further below on this page. This painting is 5 by 13 inches, on paper, the artists signature is hidden under the green mat on the bottom. It is not titled. Barry tells me he found this little gem “in a junk shop.” Keep your eyes open if you wander the antiques or vintage shops in England - a prized O.T. Clark could be hiding there!

August 28, 2008, owned by the Allen family of England for over 70 years

Allen family rural scene OT Clark O.T. Clark Octavius

Submitted by the Allen family of England, this oil painting has been in their family for 70 years. It recently came out of storage and received a new frame so it can be proudly displayed in their home. It appears to have darkened over the years but I lightened up the photo to bring out a bit more detail and color. The title of the painting is unknown, it is signed in red in the lower right corner.

Notice the distinctive prominence of the trees in the paintings and pictures shown on this page.

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 Added June 6, 2008, owned by Marcia B. of England

O.T. Clark OT Clark painting Octavius T. Clark

This is Marcia’s 6.5 x 9.5 inch gouache painting  and is believed to be an early work by Mr Clark

O.T. Clark OT Clark painting signature

The artists signature is on the right in the trees and is partially covered by the frame

O.T. Clark OT Clark painting

Submitted by Marcia B. of Somerset, England, this live appearance poster is not dated

 Added April 27, 2008, owned by Marcia B. of England

OT Clark Octavius O.T. English Painter country cottage oil painting owned by Marcia of England great-granddaughter of the artist

Click here or on the photo to see a large close up of this painting

This painting was purchased through a British auction house by Marcia, great-granddaughter of OT Clark. I had to alter it a little to minimize the reflection of the cameras flash lighting.

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 Addition: Sept 2008 owned by Ruby M.

Painting artist Octavius Thomas Clark
Painting artist Octavius Thomas Clark
Signature artist Octavius Thomas Clark

These 2 paintings accompanied Ruby’s grandfather when he left England for Canada in the late 1800’s. Because of the lack of detail, to me, these paintings appear to be unfinished works or are perhaps older than most of the others shown here. That is strictly my opinion.

signature O. T. Clark painter

Enlargement of the artists signature in the lower left corner

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OTClark emails received:

July 19, 2009: Mary Ann from Maryland writes that she purchased a framed “By A Country Lane” at a garage sale for $1.00 in Smithsburg, MD. The print is stamped Mallard Frame Inc. in Lumpkin, Georgia.

July 2009: Ivan from Maryland writes to say he purchased a small framed print of “By A Country Lane” at an auction and found this site via Google search. The 5 x 8 inch print says in the lower left corner “G P 7192, Lithg in U S A “

May 2009: Cathy D. from Canada sends me photos of her “On The Dart” print.

February 2009: Bonnie from Ontario Canada writes that her husband purchased a “By A Country Lane” framed lithograph from a local flea market for $10.00. She says it’s in beautiful condition, despite it’s unflattering, contemporary frame. “By A Country Lane” shows a tiny 'G.P. 7199 LITHO IN USA’ mark in the lower left hand corner.

December 2008: Charles B. of England has two O.T. Clark oil painting which he received as a gift from a friend.

November 2008: Vicky K. of South Minneapolis writes to say she purchased her OT Clark reprouction “By A Country Lane” at an estate sale.

September 7, 2008: A new photo submitted by Ruby M. of British Columbia, Canada, my first  “Friend of O.T. Clark.”  I also received a photo and email from the Vaughn’s of North Carolina. The list of emails and photos keep growing!

August 28, 2008: email and photo received from the Allen family of England of their prized OT Clark.

June 6, 2008: An email received from  D. and V. Snyder saying they have a “By A Country Lane” lithograph. “It hung in my grandmother's living room and when she died I got it because I enjoyed the scene.”

June 2, 2008: More photos submitted by Marcia

April 27, 2008 - OT Clarks great-granddaughter, Marcia, writes me to share her memories of having OT Clark paintings in her childhood home. She recently purchased her own at an art auction in Surrey, England (shown above) and also has a small watercolor of a cottage near a creek with a bridge over it, 2 swans in the water. She also has a lithograph of “By A Country Lane.”

March 15, 2008 - Tami writes on behalf of a friend who has a painting of “By A Country Lane.” It appears to be a 1960’s era reproduction.

March 9, 2008 - Chris P. of Arkansas writes to say a print of  “By A Country Lane” had hung at her aunts home for over 50 years. She now has it displayed in her home. She also sent me a photo of her as a very small girl with the OT Clark print on the wall behind her.

March 5, 2008 - Amelia writes me to say she has a painting signed OT Clark titled “Ye Olde Forest Gate.” Shown at right, it depicts a person at a cross-arm gate,  a gravel road leading into a property surrounded by a picket fence, a gate house and a country manor to the right side. There are chickens on the road, lots of shubbery and trees.  Amelia is looking for a buyer for this painting, I asked that she supply authentication by an art dealer or auction house.

March 4, 2008 - Gordie writes to say he has “By A Country Lane” and another unsigned print that could be attributed to OT Clark.

Feb 27, 2008 - J.W. writes to say she has “By A Country Lane”

Feb 25, 2008 - Stephen in Austria writes to say his family has had 2 OTC oil paintings at their home in England for many years.

Octavius Thomas OT Clark

”Overlooking The River” by OT Clark

Ye Olde Forest Gate O.T. Octavius OT Clark English painter

This is Amelia’s “Ye Olde Forest Gate” by OT Clark

Octavius Thomas OT Clark

“Country Landscape” by OT Clark

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Nov 28, 2007 - from Deborah in Georgia who also has “By A Country Lane” inherited from her parents who purchased it at an art gallery in the 1940’s

Nov 21, 2007 - Email received from Michael in England, great grandson of OT Clark

Oct 10, 2007 -  Amber writes to say her grandmother has a “By A Country Lane”

Oct 15, 2007 - Gary from California writes to say his parents had “By A Country Lane” in their home for over 60 years.

June 19, 2007 - Ruby writes to say she has a pair of OT Clark pictures

Octavius Thomas OT Clark

Country Scene with Figure Walking A Lane by OT Clark

OT Octavius T Clark painter A Room With A View

“A Room With A View” by OT Clark

Octavius Thomas OT Clark

 “Summer Day In The English Countryside”  (Or “An English Landscape”) by OT Clark

Octavius Thomas OT Clark

”The Sheep Drover” by OT Clark

Highland Cattle Octavius Thomas OT Clark

“Highland Cattle” by OT Clark

OT Octavius T Clark painter A Wooded Landscape

 “A Wooded Landscape” by OT Clark

reeds in a river OT Octavius T Clark painter

“Reeds In A River” by OT Clark

OT Octavius T Clark English Bristish painter The Water Mill

“The Water Mill” by OT Clark

Images used here have been submitted by their owner and/or are of the public domain because its copyright has expired. This applies to the United States, Canada, the European Union and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 70 years (1992).

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