Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Kitchingman, John
KITCHINGMAN, JOHN (1740?–1781), painter, was a pupil at Shipley's drawing school and afterwards at the Royal Academy, and was awarded several premiums by the Society of Arts; he exhibited miniatures with the Free Society from 1766 to 1768, and from 1770 was a constant contributor to the Academy exhibitions, sending, besides portraits, figure-subjects and sea-pieces. His ‘Beggar and Dog,’ a subject from Mackenzie's ‘Man of Feeling,’ exhibited in 1775, was mezzotinted on a large scale by H. Kingsbury, and a set of four pictures representing the building, chase, unlading, and dissolution of a cutter, which appeared at the Academy in the last year of his life, was well engraved by B. T. Pouncy [q. v.]; his portraits of Mrs. Elizabeth Carter, Mr. Macklin as Shylock, and Mrs. Yates as Alicia in ‘Jane Shore’ have also been engraved. Kitchingman was fond of boating, and in 1777 won the Duke of Cumberland's cup in the annual sailing match on the Thames. He married when very young, but soon separated from his wife and fell into intemperate habits. He died in King Street, Covent Garden, 28 Dec. 1781. Edwards speaks of him as a miniaturist of good abilities.
[Edwards's Anecdotes of Painters; Redgrave's Dict. of Artists; Graves's Dict. of Artists, 1760–1880; Royal Academy Catalogues.]