24 Caricatures by Several Ladies, Gentlemen, Artists, &c.
Not on view
Matthew and Mary Darly published this set of twenty-four caricatures in 1771. A husband-and-wife team, the Darlys developed a new British print genre–small etched caricatures of single figures against plain backgrounds, their identities indicated through dress, pose and a few props. Many of these works mocked the fashionable manners of contemporary London dandies called "macaronis," and the Darly's wares soon became known as macaroni prints no matter what their subjects. The implied Italian connection was in fact appropriate, since the basic form was inspired by Ghezzi's caricature drawings brought back from Rome by Grand Tourists. The form and subjects adapted by the Darlys tickled British tastes and broadened the scope of Ghezzi's works to include a range of social classes, known figures, and types.
The bound set contains a title page, frontispiece, and 24 plates, each of which caricatures a single figure. Edward Topham designed one plate, and a group of European peasants are based on designs by Henry William Bunbury.
