Portrait of a Gentleman in Scarlet Robes on a Porch Holding Flowers C.1675; Attributed to John Greenhill (C.1642-1676), Oil on Canvas

This striking portrait was painted by one of the most talented artists working in England during the last half of the 17th century, John Greenhill. Greenhill was at the centre of the artistic scene in London and his achievements may have surpassed even that of Sir Peter Lely - England’s dominant artist at the time – had his life not been cut short when he was barely in his thirties. In fact, George Vertue claimed that Lely was jealous of Greenhill’s ability and that Greenhill was “the most excellent” painter.

Painted during the reign of Charles II, the artist has depicted the sitter wearing a scarlet robe over white lace cravat and cuffs, seated before a classical column and a moody evening sky. One arm is resting on a ledge and in his hand he holds two flowers. The drapery, the splendid wig of brown curls, and the setting with classical column exude a sense of wealth and privilege, scarlet has long been associated with authority. The attire and style of coiffure help to date the painting to circa 1675. The composition is almost identical to a portrait of the first Professor of Chemistry at the University of Oxford, and the first keeper of the Ashmolean Museum, Robert Plot (1640-1696) in the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford. The use of classical column and the landscape in the distance was often employed in English portraits of this period.

Held in an exquisite carved and gilded period frame.

John Greenhill was born at Salisbury, Wiltshire around 1642. He moved to London around 1662 and became a pupil of Sir Peter Lely, the dominant artist in England in the late seventeenth century, although it seems that he left fairly soon afterwards to establish his own practice. Of all the artists to emerge from the studio of Sir Peter Lely– John Greenhill was, as George Vertue noted, “the most excellent.” Vertue claimed that Lely was jealous of his pupil’s ability.

Greenhill was at the centre of the artistic scene in London after the Restoration, and he painted most of the leading actors of his generation. He was a pioneer of coloured chalk portrait drawings in England at that time, and his depictions of actors are considered to be amongst the most notable post-restoration portraits. He was commissioned to paint a number of leading figures of the court, including Anne, Duchess of York, and even the King. He carefully studied Vandyck's portraits, and George Vertue commented that he copied so closely Vandyck's portrait of "Thomas Killigrew and his dog" that it was difficult to know which was the original. Vertue also says that his progress excited Lely's jealousy.

Greenhill was at first industrious but a taste for poetry and drama, and living in Covent Garden in the vicinity of the theatres, led him to associate with many members of the free-living theatrical world, and he fell into "irregular habits" and this led to the end of his promising career. On 19 May 1676, while returning from the Vine Tavern (in Holborn) in a state of intoxication, he fell into the gutter in Long Acre, and was carried to his lodgings in Lincoln's Inn Fields, where he died the same night, barely into his thirties. He was buried in St Giles in the Fields church. He left a widow and family, to whom Lely gave an annuity.

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Measurements: Height 142cm, Width 117cm framed (Height 56”, Width 46” framed)

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