Right Church, Wrong Pew
Figurine
$150.00

Artist's Profile: Cicely Mary Barker

Cicely Mary Barker was born in 1895 in Croydon, England. She is most famous for her 'Flower Fairy' illustrations. At the age of 13 she began studying at the Croydon School of Art, where she later taught. When she was 15 years old, she sold several of her illustrations to Raphael Tuck, who published them as a set of postcards. Then at the age of 16 she won second prize in a Croydon Art Society poster competition. Soon after that, she became the youngest member to be elected to lifetime membership in that society.

When her father died in 1912, Cicely began actively selling her work to help support her family. She sold poetry and illustrations to several of the popular magazines of her day. She sketched children at work and at play, but also in religious, literary, and national themes. The best known are 'Shakespeare's Children', 'Children of the Allies' and her early 'Fairy Cards'.

Fairies were popular subjects at that time and a favorite of Queen Mary, who enjoyed sending her friends postcards with fairy illustrations on them. Cicely used real children as models for her flower fairies and enhanced her drawings further with botanical prints. She took up the habit of carrying a sketch book with her, so that she might sketch anything interesting for future reference.

Her 'Flower Fairies' were a great success. The first 'Flower Fairy' book was published in 1923. Cicely's illustrations eventually appeared in at least 36 books. She continued to also design postcards and greeting cards, as well as to donate paintings to local churches to help them raise money. She did her best to volunteer to help others whenever she could. In 1925 Queen Mary purchased Cicely's painting "The Darling of The World is Come".

The Plate Lady carries only one of Cicely's Flower Fairies in porcelain: Ragged Robin. However, she carries a great number of fairy figurines and garden statues to offer to her gift shopping customers.

Cicely Mary Barker died on February 16, 1973 at the age of 77 on the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of her first 'Flower Fairy' book. Although that first book was published more than 80 years ago, 'Flower Fairies' are still as popular as ever. It is now an English tradition to place fairies in the garden to watch over favorite flowers.