Homer Ransford Watson
Homer Ransford Watson
1855 - 1936
CAC OSA RCA
Homer Ransford Watson’s dedication to depicting the pastoral scenes of rural Ontario, the Hudson River and the Adirondacks areas in the United States, as well as England, would bring him international recognition as a landscape painter.

Born in 1855 in Doon, Ontario, Watson was primarily a self-taught artist. Watson was a member of the Ontario Society of Artists, a founding member and first president of the Canadian Arts Club, and later, from 1918 - 1921, the president of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. Doon was an important painting place for Watson – he acquired a house there and depicted its surrounds throughout his life.
Watson’s work quickly gained prominence in Toronto through his exhibitions with the art societies, and in 1879, Watson’s submission won first place at the Toronto Industrial Exhibition. A year later, his work The Pioneer Mill was purchased for the Royal Collection of Queen Victoria at the opening exhibition of the RCA. He exhibited in the Colonial and Indian Exhibition in London in 1886, and subsequently spent three years in England. Watson had international clients such as Oscar Wilde, who commissioned a painting and likened his work to that of the English painter John Constable.
Watson’s early paintings of rural subjects are characterized by a fine consideration for detail. Some of Watson’s early works were influenced by the American Hudson River School, and were compared to artworks in the Barbizon School. As Watson was exposed to works of the British and European Masters, he also simplified his forms and lengthened his brush-strokes, resulting in an atmospheric effect. At the turn of the nineteenth century, Watson was producing some of his best works; he produced his masterpiece, The Flood Gate, in 1900.
Watson gained a prominent international reputation - in 1899 he had a successful one-man show in London, followed by one in New York. In Canada, he became so well known that his works were acquired by prominent Montreal collectors, wealthy railroad contractor James Ross and Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie.
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Morning in the Lane by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $11,875
Homer Ransford Watson
Morning in the Lane
14 1/4 x 22 1/2 in, 36.2 x 57.2 cm
oil on canvas
Estimate: $4,000 - $6,000 CDN
Sold for: $11,875 CDN (premium included)
19th & 20th Century Art on Thursday, February 28, 2019
Toward Evening by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $8,260
Homer Ransford Watson
Toward Evening
18 x 24 1/4 in, 45.7 x 61.6 cm
oil on canvas
Estimate: $7,000 - $9,000 CDN
Sold for: $8,260 CDN (premium included)
November 2016 - 10th Session on Saturday, November 26, 2016
Landscape by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $7,500
Homer Ransford Watson
Landscape
20 1/4 x 30 1/8 in, 51.4 x 76.5 cm
oil on canvas
Estimate: $5,000 - $7,000 CDN
Sold for: $7,500 CDN (premium included)
Spring Thaw: Canadian Landscapes on Thursday, June 28, 2018
Mother and Child Returning Home by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $6,900
Homer Ransford Watson
Mother and Child Returning Home
9 1/4 x 11 in, 23.5 x 27.9 cm
oil on canvas
Estimate: $3,000 - $4,000 CDN
Sold for: $6,900 CDN (premium included)
November 2006 - 1st Session on Saturday, November 25, 2006
Sugaring Off at Doon by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $5,625
Homer Ransford Watson
Sugaring Off at Doon
18 x 22 in, 45.7 x 55.9 cm
oil on canvas
Estimate: $3,000 - $5,000 CDN
Sold for: $5,625 CDN (premium included)
Fine Canadian & International Art on Thursday, August 27, 2020
Old Stone House, Isle of Orleans by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $5,313
Homer Ransford Watson
Old Stone House, Isle of Orleans
6 1/2 x 9 1/4 in, 16.5 x 23.5 cm
oil on board
Estimate: $1,200 - $1,500 CDN
Sold for: $5,313 CDN (premium included)
January 2017 - 6th Session on Thursday, January 26, 2017
The Fountain by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $4,680
Homer Ransford Watson
The Fountain
18 x 24 in, 45.7 x 61 cm
oil on canvas
Estimate: $6,000 - $8,000 CDN
Sold for: $4,680 CDN (premium included)
November 2010 - 7th Session on Saturday, November 27, 2010
Waterfall in the Woods by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $4,600
Homer Ransford Watson
Waterfall in the Woods
14 x 20 in, 35.6 x 50.8 cm
oil on board
Estimate: $1,500 - $2,000 CDN
Sold for: $4,600 CDN (premium included)
November 2005 - 3rd Session on Saturday, November 26, 2005
Two Works by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $4,313
Homer Ransford Watson
Two Works
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Estimate: $4,000 - $5,000 CDN
Sold for: $4,313 CDN (premium included)
November 2007 - 2nd Session on Saturday, November 24, 2007
Road to the East by Homer Ransford Watson sold for $4,313
Homer Ransford Watson
Road to the East
5 1/2 x 12 in, 14 x 30.5 cm
oil on canvas
Estimate: $1,200 - $1,600 CDN
Sold for: $4,313 CDN (premium included)
November 2005 - 3rd Session on Saturday, November 26, 2005