Mary Delany and her Paper Mosaicks

I've been doing a bit of research on Mary Delany, the artist whose floral collages so inspired Sybil Connolly. It appears that Delany too was a fascinating and creative woman.

Born in England in 1700, Mary Granville Pendarves Delany was known for her wit, her charm, and her intellect. Like many well-bred ladies of the day, Delany became skilled in both needlework and shellwork, the latter becoming extremely popular in the 18th c. This detail-oriented type work, coupled with her knowledge of Botany, would hold Delany in good stead as she began creating her floral paper collages in the 1770s. As the story goes, one day Delany noticed the similarity between the color of a vibrant geranium and that of a red piece of paper. Delany began to cut the paper into petals and thus created her first "paper mosaick" (her term for her collage work). Until her eyesight failed her in 1782, Delany was prolific with her paper work. Her collection of work, which she called her "Herbal" or Hortus Siccus, was inspired by the numerous plants and flowers that her friends gave her. Or perhaps I should say that her friends were inspired by her work- King George III and Queen Charlotte so admired her work that they supposedly instructed the botanists at Kew Gardens to send Mrs. Delany floral specimens. At the time of her death in 1788, Delany's Hortus Siccus was comprised of ten albums of her work. These albums were later given to the British Museum in 1897.

You'll notice that her collages were pasted onto black paper (I can't confirm whether all of her work was as such, but it seems that most of it was). Occasionally Delany would embellish her work with watercolors, especially if she was having difficulty in achieving the accurate colors. This, however, did not seem to be the rule. Delany was able to source colorful papers, and she was also known to dye her own if particular colors were not available.

On the front sides of her work, Delany tended to include both the scientific and common names of the botanical subjects. You'll also notice that she usually made a cut-out of her initials- MD- on either the bottom right or left corners. From an artistic standpoint, I think it's incredible how detailed the flowers are. Most of her works incorporated hundreds of pieces of cut paper. But what seemed to astonish and impress botanists of that period was the accuracy with which she rendered the flowers. Delany was meticulous about rendering even the smallest detail- veins, stamens, etc.

Unfortunately, images of her work are hard to come by, but I was able to find a few on the web. If you would like to read more about Delany, there is a book that was published a few years ago by one of her descendants- Mrs. Delany: Her Life and Her Flowers. I've just ordered it from Amazon, so I'll let you know if it's a worthwhile book.



Winter Cherry, or Physalis, c. 1772-88 (image from the British Museum)


Bay Leaved (Passiflora laurifolia), c. 1777. There are over 230 paper petals in the bloom of the flower. (Image from the British Museum)


Asphodil Lilly (Crinum Zeylanicum), c. 1778 (image courtesy of the British Museum)


Sea Daffodil (Pancratium maritinum)


A stem of a stock, c. 1781 (part of the Royal Collection)

Mrs. Delany and Her Circle

I was excited to learn that the Yale Center for British Art will be exhibiting the work of Mrs. Delany in a show titled Mrs. Delany and Her Circle. Some of you might remember my posts on Mrs. Delany, one of 18th c. England's most noted paper mosaic artists. The show, co-organized with the Sir John Soane's Museum, will feature many of her paper cutouts as well as what is described as a court dress embroidered with naturalistic flowers. The show runs from September 24, 2009 through January 3, 2010.

While you're there, you might also want to see Horace Walpole's Strawberry Hill. The exhibit made its debut at the V&A a while back. Alas, I never made it to the V&A to see it, so now is my opportunity.

To read more on Strawberry Hill (a home that Carolina Irving cites as inspiration), there is a great book that came out a year or so ago-Strawberry Hill: Horace Walpole's Gothic Castle by Anna Chalcraft. Yale University will be releasing a book on the Delany exhibit in December titled Mrs. Delany and Her Circle .

Mrs. Delany, Still Fashionable Centuries Later

So, I figured if everybody else in Atlanta was taking a few snow days, I'd do the same. Of course, there was absolutely no excuse for me not to compose a few posts or two. The power did stay on, after all. But sometimes it's a real treat to do absolutely nothing, and that nothing included spending an embarrassing amount of time on Neiman's website. It wasn't for naught, either, because I found an Etro skirt that I'm dying for as well as some YSL shoes. What really caught my eye, though, was this Carolina Herrera skirt, shown above. It's really unique and striking, right? I tend to avoid wearing anything floral on my person, something which I attribute to those Laura Ashley dresses from the 1980s. (They were cute, but a little went a long way.)

No, what really struck me about this skirt is how reminiscent it is of Mary Delany's botanical paper mosaics. Then I read that much of Herrera's Spring 2011 collection was inspired by 18th century botanical plates, so the connection makes sense. Of course, Mary Delany never used tape in her work (or at least not that I'm aware of), but other similarities are there. Here is a little side by side comparison:





"Phlox suaveolens", 1776





"Amygdalus Persica", 1778





"Cynoglossum omphalodes", 1776.





"Arctotis calendulacea", 1777.


Top images from Neiman Marcus; other Herrera photos courtesy of Style.com; Delany images from Mrs. Delany and Her Circle (Yale Centre for British Art)

The Flowers of Tiffany & Co.

Years ago, Tiffany & Co. used to have the loveliest floral print china. Tulip lovers and wildflower fans alike could find a pattern that struck their fancies. That must be a thing of the past because a recent search on their website yielded only one such pattern.

I admit that if I were allowed to have only one china pattern, it would not be floral. I would have to choose a Chinoiserie pattern. However, I do find floral patterns to be very charming. Can't you see using floral print dinner plates for a Spring or Summer dinner party or ladies lunch? What about serving dessert on a set of flowery dessert plates? A berry dessert would look lovely against the backdrop of delicate flowers.

I realize that to some, floral china looks old-fashioned. And in a way, it does, but that's the charm of it. I searched the internet high and low for photos of discontinued Tiffany & Co. floral china, and if you ask me, I don't think any of the patterns look old nor stodgy.




I've always loved Sybil Connolly's Mrs. Delany's Flowers for Tiffany & Co. The black background is a nice twist.






Tiffany Tulips




Fleurettes, Tiffany Private Stock





Wildflowers





Famille Noir





Tiffany Garden



Image at top: Tiffany's Biedermeier earthenware; photo from Tiffany Taste; the other two tabletop photos from New Tiffany Table Settings.

Grant Gibson, Sacramento Street, and a Rant

Seeing that we have no gas here in Atlanta, I've had to severely limit my running around. I use very little gas as it is because I live in the heart of the city and I don't drive an SUV. But still, it's chaos here with people spending all of their time driving around and around trying to find gas. And when you do find it, you have to wait in line for HOURS. It's absurd. Absolutely maddening. And on top of that our governor is in Europe and seems to be doing little to solve this mess. Needless to say, I'm staying close to home and to the office knowing that the situation may not improve for another few weeks. (That's the rant.)

So, my shopping and browsing is now limited to the internet. It's not as gratifying as the real thing, but it will have to do. And the timing couldn't have been more perfect to do a little vicarious shopping with Grant K. Gibson.

I've admired Gibson's work for some time now. The San Francisco designer aces that fresh and clean traditional look with some gusto thrown in for good measure . Recently, Gibson was featured in a California Home and Design article (Oct. '08) extolling the virtues of the shops of Sacramento Street. He's definitely the one to ask. After all, his design studio is located on Sacramento.

I always make a point to visit the Sacramento St. shops during my twice yearly visits to San Francisco. There is something about that street that is so appealing to me. It's not frenzied nor frenetic but rather low-key and charming. In fact, during my last trip there my sister took me to a very trendy, still rather gritty part of town to visit some hip design stores. I took one step out of the car, assessed the situation, turned on my heel and said "May we please just get back into the car and go to Sacramento Street?" What can I say? I'm a creature of habit- and comfort.

There is legendary shop Sue Fisher King- one of my favorites for linens (Porthault included), tabletop, and accessories. And of course there's Kendall Wilkinson Home. These too are favorites of Gibson. But another Gibson recommendation is new to me: Ribbonerie. Gibson suggests shopping there for ribbon for pillows or lampshade trim. Who doesn't love a good ribbon and trim shop?

And one more gem- Birch, a floral shop with a black interior (almost like a retail version of Mrs. Delany's Flowers!) Gibson likes the shop because the black walls make the flowers pop.

So for those of you whose style is being cramped by the gas shortage or those who just want to spend some time looking at beautiful things, visit Gibson's site and those of the featured shops for a little inspiration.




A few glimpses of Gibson's portfolio.


These are the types of beautiful things you'll find at Sue Fisher King


A view inside of Kendall Wilkinson Home


This is just one of many ribbons you'll find at Ribbonerie (both in their store and online.)


A floral arrangement by Birch

Image at top: Gibson about to embark on some Sacramento Street shopping with the doggies. (Photograph by Jen Siska)