Portrait of a Lady, attributed to Henrietta De Beaulieu Dering Johnston (1674-1729)

A fine and diminutive early 18th century pastel portrait of a beauty attributed to Henrietta de Beaulieu Dering Johnston. Executed in rapid strokes on buff paper this charming work retains much of its original bright pigments.

The elegant sitter has her hair upswept in the style of the period and with her wide eyes and rosebud lips she is a beguiling beauty. She wears the typical silk clothing of ladies of the period in a 'state of careless undress' as it was known in the period. In her case a bright red wrap over over a white chemise which falls off her shoulders.

This work has all the impact of a much larger portrait of the period and comes housed ready to hang in its original early ebonised fruitwood frame with sanded gilt slip.

Henrietta Johnston was born in northern France around the year 1674. In 1687, her family fled to London to escape religious persecution. In 1694, she married a son of baronet and moved to Ireland. While in Ireland, Henrietta learned to make pastel portraits.

Henrietta’s husband died in 1704, leaving her a widow with two young children. She remarried in 1705. Her second husband, Gideon Johnston, was a minister in the Anglican Church. He had four children of his own, and was in financial trouble. In 1708, he decided to move his entire family to Charleston in the colony of South Carolina, accepting the role of representative for the bishop of London.

The Johnston family continued to have money troubles in their new home, so Henrietta started to work as a professional portraitist for the city’s elite. She is the first recorded professional female artist in the colonies, and the first colonial artist to use pastels. Getting the supplies she needed was difficult, so Henrietta made a trip back to London in 1711. On her return journey, she survived an attack by pirates.

When her second husband died in 1716, Henrietta became the sole provider for her family. Her reputation as an artist spread, and in 1725, she traveled to New York to make portraits for that city’s elite. She died in Charleston on March 9, 1729. Today about three dozen of her portraits survive.

Johnston has earned the distinction of being both the first professional woman artist and the first professional pastelist in America and her pastels are among the most frequently published and most revered of all her works.

Sheet Dimensions: 30cm x 23cm
Framed Dimnensions: 45cm x 38cm x 4cm