FELIX OCTAVIUS CARR DARLEY (American, 1822-1888). CIVIL WAR ENCAMPMENT, inscribed on verso, "Original sketch by F.O.C Darley presented to Wm. Habbart of Claymont, Dela. after the death of Mr. Darley, by his widow". Watercolor - Framed, 11 1/2 in. x 18 1/4 in. Estimate $400-600
An important nineteenth-century American illustrator and watercolorist, Felix Octavius Carr Darley embellished over 200 prints, periodicals, and books throughout his career, including the first fully-illustrated edition of Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle and assorted works by James Fenimore Cooper, Edgar Allen Poe, and Charles Dickens. Equally renowned for his bank note vignettes and pen and ink drawings, Darley has been called "the first true illustrator of the American Spirit". The present lot, depicting a raucous Civil War encampment, reveals the artist's imaginative approach to contemporary life.
