Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Mary Granville Delany is best remembered for her paper collages of flora, the majority of which are at the British Museum. This captivating new biography pulls back the lens to place Delany's artistic creations in the broader context of her family life, relationships with royalty, and links to early feminist debates on marriage.
A comprehensive work written for a general audience, this life provides rich details of the era, including Delany's many friendships with prominent figures such as Methodist leader John Wesley, composer G. F. Handel, and England's leading patron of science, Margaret 2nd Duchess of Portland. Clarissa Campbell Orr is a noted authority on the eighteenth-century court and queenship, and this volume restores Delany to her proper place in the era's aristocratic society, revealing her as far more than an apparently poor, genteel widow befriended by George III and Queen Charlotte.
Synopsis
The first comprehensive biography of Mary Granville Delany--the artist and court insider whose wide-ranging legacy still reverberates today
Mary Granville Delany is best remembered for her paper collages of flora, the majority of which are at the British Museum. This captivating new biography pulls back the lens to place Delany's artistic creations in the broader context of her family life, relationships with royalty, and links to early feminist debates on marriage.
A comprehensive work written for a general audience, this life provides rich details of the era, including Delany's many friendships with prominent figures such as Methodist leader John Wesley, composer G. F. Handel, and England's leading patron of science, Margaret 2nd Duchess of Portland. Clarissa Campbell Orr is a noted authority on the eighteenth-century court and queenship, and this volume restores Delany to her proper place in the era's aristocratic society, revealing her as far more than an apparently poor, genteel widow befriended by George III and Queen Charlotte.
Synopsis
Eighteenth-century artist and court insider Mary Granville Delany is best remembered for her elegant collages of flowers and other flora. This captivating new biography places Delany's artistic creations in the broader context of her family life, relationships with royalty, and links to early feminist debates on marriage.
Synopsis
The first comprehensive biography of Mary Granville Delany - the artist and court insider whose flower collages, in particular, continue to inspire widespread admiration Mrs Delany is best remembered for her captivating paper collages of flowers, but her artistic flourishing came late in life. This nuanced, deeply researched biography pulls back the lens to place Delany's art in the broader context of her family life, relationships with royalty, and her endeavor to live as an independent woman.
Clarissa Campbell Orr, a noted authority on the eighteenth century court, charts Mary Delany's development from a young woman at the heart of elite circles to beloved godmother and celebrated collagist. Orr traces the varied connections Mary Delany fostered throughout her life and which influenced her intellectual and artistic development: she was friends with prominent figures such as Methodist leader, John Wesley, composer G. F. Handel, the writer Jonathan Swift, and England's leading patron of science, Margaret Bentinck, Duchess of Portland.
Mrs Delany reveals its subject to be far more than a widow befriended by George III and Queen Charlotte; she is, instead, restored to her proper place in the era's aristocratic society -and as a ground-breaking artist.
Synopsis
The first comprehensive biography of Mary Granville Delany--the artist and court insider whose flower collages, in particular, continue to inspire widespread admiration "Biographer Clarissa Campbell Orr immerses you in the minutiae of Mary's life" --Constance Craig-Smith, Daily Mail
Mary Granville Delany (1700-1788), perhaps best known simply as Mrs Delany, is best remembered for her captivating paper collages of flowers, but her artistic flourishing came late in life. This nuanced, deeply researched biography pulls back the lens to place Delany's art in the broader context of her family life, relationships with royalty, and her endeavor to live as an independent woman.
Clarissa Campbell Orr, a noted authority on the eighteenth century court, charts Mary Delany's development from a young woman at the heart of elite circles to beloved godmother and celebrated collagist. Orr traces the varied connections Mary Delany fostered throughout her life and which influenced her intellectual and artistic development: she was friends with prominent figures such as Methodist leader, John Wesley, composer G. F. Handel, the writer Jonathan Swift, and England's leading patron of science, Margaret Bentinck, Duchess of Portland.
Mrs Delany reveals its subject to be far more than a widow befriended by George III and Queen Charlotte; she is, instead, restored to her proper place in the era's aristocratic society -and as a ground-breaking artist.