as well as Charles II and James II, painted as children, both of which are in the National Portrait Gallery (London). He collaborated with Gerard Houckgeest on a portrait of Charles I's wife, Queen Henrietta Maria. After his move to the Netherlands, he continued to produce portraits of English clients – both exiled Royalists, and clients still living in England. Studio Johnson's studio in the 1620s was in St Anne's, Blackfriars, London. The size of Johnson’s studio is not known, but surviving portraits such as the portrait erroneously inscribed Countess of Arundel and that of Sir Alexander Temple (both below) help reconstruct the painting process. It is likely that Johnson did not paint the complete portraits himself. The wet-over-dry paint layering of the costumes (see 'Technique' below) and the fictive ovals allowed contributions from others in the studio, as did the demand for additional versions. Patronage His patrons came from the gentry, but were not from the highest levels in society. His sitters were Dutch immigrants, gentlemen and courtiers. During the first few years of his career, a network of patronage by five families enabled Johnson to establish his reputation as a painter on the national stage. These families were the Boothby family of London and Chingford, the Corbett family of Shropshire, the Leveson family of Shropshire and Staffordshire, the Temple family of Burton Dassett and Stowe, and the Lenthall family of Burford and Besselsleigh. These families were connected to each other by marriage. The identity of many of his sitters has been lost. Despite having only received a few commissions from the crown, in 1632, Johnson was appointed as "his Majesty's servant in the quality of Picture drawer" by Charles I. This appointment was perhaps in connection with the arrival of Van Dyck and the departure from England of Daniel Mytens – Johnson may have been found a role as a back-up for van Dyck. Style He has been described as "one of the most gifted and prolific portrait painters practising in England during the 1620s and 1630s". Lionel Cust describes him as being "more accomplished" than Gheeraerts. However, he has also been described as "a good painter, but unable to compete with the flair and superlative skills of van Dyck". Compared with van Dyck, Johnson's portraits were "lower key but exquisite". He was one of the few artists in England at this time who consistently signed and dated