After their marriage the couple moved to Bexleyheath for a few years, then to Chobham, Cheltenham, Tisbury and finally to The Cottage, Church Street, Storrington.

Hardy exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1890 with His Majesty Henry VIII visits Sir Thomas More at Chelsea and again in 1899 with There it befell, that as they rode near a forest, they saw a damsel and her dwarf sore distressed.

In recognition of his work as a black-and-white artist, and his contribution to the study of medieval arms and armour, he was granted a Civil List pension of £80 in 1932.

The authors whose work Hardy illustrated include the following (based on the list provided by Kirkpatrick):[8] Rogues of the Fiery Cross was Samuel Walkey's (10 July 1871 – 29 March 19)[19][20] second serial novel.

Hardy paid attention to historical detail including the rigging of ships and period costume.

[7] Houfe notes that Hardy was one of the artist's whose work proprietor George Newnes had on display in his two-room gallery at the office of The Strand Magazine.

[23] However, Kirkpatrick quotes Brian Doyle in his Who's Who of Boys' Writers and Illustrators (1964) as saying that: Hardy’s work was at once distinctive and accomplished.