Cornelis Jonson van Ceulen (London 1593-1661 Utrecht) Portrait of a lady, half-length, in a pink dress with blue ribbons signed and dated 'C. J. fecit/ 1637' (lower left) oil on canvas 76.5 x 64cm (30 1/8 x 25 3/16in). Footnotes: Provenance The Collection of Sir Thomas Aston, 1922 Literature A. J. Finberg, 'A Chronological List of Portraits by Cornelius Johnson, or Jonson', in The Walpole Society, 1921-1922, vol. 10, cat. no. 96, ill. pl. LXX Based in his studio in Blackfriars, Johnson painted the gentry, aristocrats, lawyers and merchants, including members of London's Netherlandish community, from whence his parents originated. The present portrait is typical in the way in which he meticulously recorded their fine dress and lace collars. In 1632 he was appointed 'picture-drawer' to Charles I, producing a few small-scale royal portraits, although the main royal commissions went to Sir Anthony van Dyck. While his reputation has been largely overshadowed by his more famous rival, Johnson's reputation was to some degree restored by the London National Portrait Gallery's 2015 celebration of his work, Cornelius Johnson:Charles I's Forgotten Painter. Johnson was the first British-born artist consistently to sign and date his paintings, although his signatures varied over the years. In late 1643, following the outbreak of civil war in Britain, and the collapse of court patronage, Johnson and his family moved back to the Netherlands. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com