Lot 56: BENJAMIN VANDERGUCHT 1753-1794

PORTRAIT OF A GENTLEMAN, TRADITIONALLY IDENTIFIED AS JOHN HENRY JOHNSTONE (1749-1828)

measurements note
75 by 62 cm., 29½ by 24½ in.

Half length, seated, wearing a red coat and waistcoat, holding a print of William Shakespeare

oil on canvas

NOTE

John Johnstone was a well respected actor. He was a regular performer in the Drury Lane company, and he played a range of parts, including one of the witches in Macbeth, and several female characters in pantomine. He played characters both in plays and in pantomime for over twenty-five seasons. In 1766 he bacame the secretary of the Drury Lane Theatrical Fund, of which Garrick was Chairman.