John Taylor (painter)
This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (February 2022) |
John Taylor (c. 1580–1653)[1] was an English artist who has been put forth as the most likely painter of the Chandos portrait of William Shakespeare. No other painting by him is known.
Taylor was probably a child actor with the
Joseph Taylor
, who also began his career as a child actor. Vertue also says that Taylor was an "intimate friend" of Shakespeare's.
By the 1620s Taylor was a member of the
Painter-Stainers' Company, having at least six apprentices between 1626 and 1648. Taylor became a significant figure within the company, rising to the positions of Renter Warden (1632–33), Upper Warden (1635–36) and Master (1643–44). A portrait of Taylor in his official capacity as Warden is in the collection of the company.[2]
Notes
- ^ "John Taylor (1580–1653) | Art UK". artuk.org.
- ^ a b Tarnya Cooper, Searching for Shakespeare, National Portrait Gallery Publications / Yale University Press, 2006, p. 57.