Catalogue Entry
Johnson, like other artists, painted himself when not engaged in other projects. In these portraits we see the chronological progression of his physiognomy, especially his facial hair. Sometimes we see the inner man, and at other times we see the man in his environment. The self-portrait he presented to the National Academy of Design when he was inducted in 1859 is the grandest; but the most flamboyant is his self-portrait of 1899, in which he is dressed in the costume he wore at the Twelfth Night celebration at the Century Association. —PH
Hills, 2021: The inscription on this painting indicates that Johnson gave it to his friend and fellow artist George P. A. Healy. Healy also gave Johnson a portrait of himself, now at the Brooklyn Museum; see the linked image. Both were on the same ship that brought them back to the U.S. from Europe in 1855. In the ship's log, Healy was listed as "artist" and Johnson was listed as "merchant"—probably because he was returning with a number of pieces of furniture, including a large cabinet.
Healy's self-portrait is inscribed across the top in red: "To my friend Eastman Johson [sic], with the kind regards of Geo. P. A. Healy. Paris Feb 19th. 1886."
Jonathan Eastman Johnson (1824–1906). American portrait and genre painter. Son of Philip Carrigan Johnson and Mary Kimball Chandler Johnson; brother of Reuben, Judith, Mary, Philip, Sarah, Harriet, and Eleanor. Married Elizabeth Williams Buckley (m. 1869); father of Ethel (1870–1931).
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