Mary and Matthew Darly facts for kids
Mary and Matthew Darly were English printsellers and caricaturists in the 1770s. A caricaturist is an artist who draws funny pictures of people, often making their features bigger to create a humorous effect.
Mary Darly (who was active between 1756 and 1779) was a printseller, caricaturist, artist, engraver, writer, and teacher. An engraver is someone who carves designs onto metal plates to make prints. She wrote, illustrated, and published the first book about drawing caricatures. It was called A Book of Caricaturas (around 1762) and was made for "young gentlemen and ladies."
Mary was married to Matthew Darly, also known as Matthias (who was active between 1741 and 1778). He was a printseller in London, a furniture designer, and an engraver. Mary was Matthew's second wife. His first wife was named Elizabeth Harold.
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Matthew Darly: Artist and Designer
Matthew Darly started his career as an apprentice to a clockmaker in 1735. Later, he took on four apprentices himself between 1752 and 1778. In the early part of his career, Matthew Darly moved his shops around the Strand area of London. He always called his shops "The Acorn" or "The Golden Acorn."
He might have started as an architect, but he soon became famous for furniture designs and caricatures. People even wrote about how famous he was. For example, a painter named Richard Cosway was so fashionable that Matthew Darly made an etching of him. He displayed it in his shop window as "The Macaroni Miniature Painter." A "macaroni" was a very fashionable and often over-the-top person in 18th-century England.
Darly's Designs and Publications
Matthew Darly created many different designs. He designed ceilings, chimney pieces, mirror frames, and decorative panels. He also designed other things for homes. He engraved many designs for Thomas Chippendale's famous furniture book, The Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director.
Darly sold his own creations directly to customers. His first known publication was a colored caricature called The Cricket Players of Europe (1741). In 1754, he worked with a partner named Edwards. They published A New Book of Chinese Designs. This book was for the popular style of furniture and decorations called chinoiserie, which used Chinese-inspired patterns. It also included some fun, curvy chairs and tables in the Rococo style, which looked like they were made from twisted roots.
In the same year, 1754, he engraved many plates for Chippendale's Director. Later, in 1760, he published A New Book of Ceilings. Darly had shops at many different addresses, mostly in the Strand area. For a long time, his shop was one of the most important of its kind in London.
Darly's Artistic Connections
For many years, Darly worked with Edwards. Together, they published many political prints. These prints were first sold separately and then collected each year into books called Political and Satirical History.
Darly was a member of two important art groups: the Incorporated Society of Artists and the Free Society of Artists. These groups were earlier, less successful rivals to the Royal Academy. Darly showed many of his architectural drawings at their exhibitions. He also showed an etching of himself in 1775. On one of his etchings, published from 39 Strand, he was called "Professor of Ornament to the Academy of Great Britain."
Darly's most important publication was The Ornamental Architect or Young Artist's Instructor... (1770–1771). This book showed how to draw the five main types of architectural columns and their decorations. The title was changed in 1773 to A Compleat Body of Architecture. He also published Sixty Vases by English, French and Italian Masters (1767). Besides all his other work, Darly made many book plates (small prints for inside books). He also illustrated various books and furniture catalogs. He even gave lessons in etching.
Darly's Later Life
Darly's skill as a caricaturist brought him close to the politicians of his time. He was a supporter of John Wilkes, a well-known politician. Darly described himself as a "Liveryman and block maker." He published his last caricature in October 1780. His shop at No. 39 Strand was rented to a new person the next year. This suggests that he likely died or could no longer work by that time.
The Darlys: A Creative Team
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By 1756, Mary and Matthew Darly had print shops in Fleet Street and the Strand. Mary was the only manager of the shop at "The Acorn, Ryders Court (Cranbourne Alley), Leicester Fields." Mary advertised in newspapers using her own name as an "etcher and publisher." She was one of the first professional caricaturists in England.
The Darlys' shops were among the first to specialize in caricatures. At first, in the 1750s, they focused on political topics during times of political trouble. Later, they focused on the world of fashion. They were smart business people who changed what they sold based on what was popular. Their etchings and engravings included funny pictures of "Wigs" (1773) and "The Preposterous Head Dress, or the Featherd Lady" (1776). They also made prints like "Phaetona or Modern Female Taste" (1776) and "Miss Shuttle-Cock" (1776).
The Darlys also offered drawing lessons to wealthy men and women.
The Macaroni Craze
The Darlys moved their shop from Fleet Street to the West End. This happened as more people became interested in drawing their own caricatures. At their West End shop, they published six sets of funny "macaroni" prints between 1771 and 1773. Each set had 24 portraits. Their new shop became known as "The Macaroni Print-Shop."
Matthew and Mary Darly helped start a huge interest in caricatures in London. They filled the market with prints about social life, including those that made fun of the "macaronis."
In the 1770s, the Darlys sold many different prints at various prices. Their customers came from different social classes.
Working with Other Artists
The Darlys also engraved drawings made by other artists. They advertised that "Ladies to whom the fumes of the Aqua Fortis are Noxious may have their Plates carefully Bit, and proved..." This meant that if the chemicals used in etching bothered ladies, the Darlys would do the tricky parts for them. They also offered to teach engraving, etching, and other techniques at customers' homes.
The Darlys even asked amateur artists to send in their sketches to be published. They held an exhibition of amateur prints, showing "several laughable Subjects, droll Figures, and sundry Characters."
The furniture makers Ince and Mayhew hired Matthew Darly as an engraver. William Austin was another caricaturist who was a rival of the Darlys.
The Darlys helped make Henry Bunbury famous for his funny caricatures by publishing his work. Also, Anthony Pasquin studied at Matthew Darly’s studio earlier in his career.
There was a small engraved portrait of Mary Darly in the Print Room of the British Museum. It was called "The Female Connoisseur" (1772). In the picture, she is shown looking at a caricature sketch.
