Alfred Cheney Johnston Silver Gelatin Photograph Autographed by Dorothy Stone

Item Details

Alfred Cheney Johnston (American, 1885 – 1971)
Dorothy Stone (promotional photograph for Criss-Cross, circa 1926
Signed and dedicated to the lower center
Don Diego studio stamp to the lower right
Inscription to the verso

Based in New York, Alfred Cheney Johnston was best known for his photographic portraits of the Ziegfeld Follies showgirls, in addition to portraits of stage and movie actors. A graduate of the National Academy of Design in New York, he was initially a painter and illustrator, using the camera to record reference photos for paintings. After finding little success in painting portraits for a living, he turned to photography as his creative medium at the advice of longtime friend and renowned illustrator, Charles Dana Gibson. Around 1917, Johnston was hired as a contracted photographer by Florenz Ziegfeld, showman and producer of Ziegfeld Follies, where he spent the next 15 years. During this time, he was also maintaining his own successful commercial studio throughout various locations of New York, photographing hundreds of other actors and showgirls, fashion ads, and aspiring celebrities. Near the end of his booming career, Johnston donated some 245 large prints of his work to the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

Condition

- minor marks to the lower right of image; image examined outside of the frame; abrasions and nicks to the finish of the frame.

Dimensions

- measures frame; visible image measures 9.25" W x 12.5" H.

Item #

ITMG384510