Biography henrietta johnston

Irish-born artist who was possibly the first woman artist in America . Born Henrietta Deering before , probably in Ireland; died in Charleston, South Carolina, on March 7, (some sources cite ); married Gideon Johnston (a cleric of the Church of England), on April 11, ; children: several stepchildren.

If ever art was born of necessity, it is the art of Henrietta Johnston, who produced some 40 pastel portraits of distinguished citizens of Charleston, South Carolina, during the early 18th century and, in doing so, provided income for her struggling family.

Little is known of her life until her marriage to Reverend Gideon Johnston in Dublin, Ireland, in April At the time, Gideon, a cleric of the Church of England and a widower with several children, was heavily in debt. In , after Gideon had procured an appointment as rector to a church in Charleston (then Charles Town), the Johnstons sailed for America, hoping for a brighter future.

The voyage, howe