Mrs Luke Ionides (1848-1929)

Oil Painting
1882 (painted)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The sitter, Elfrida Ionides, was married to Luke Ionides, of the famous British family of art patrons. She wears a loose, flowing dress and amber beads. In 1881 the ornate sofa was illustrated in a book on advanced interior decoration. The screen is made of embroidered Japanese kimono silk. This setting and her costume epitomise the ideals of the Aesthetic Movement.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Oil Painting
  • Stretcher
TitleMrs Luke Ionides (1848-1929) (generic title)
Materials and techniques
oil on canvas
Brief description
Oil painting, portrait of Mrs Luke Ionides by Sir William Blake Richmond, Great Britain, 1882.
Physical description
Oil painting, portrait of Mrs Luke Ionides. The sitter wears a loose, flowing, salmon-pink dress with white lace at collar and sleeves, belted at the waist, and holds a long string of amber beads. She is seated on an ornate carved and gilt sofa with green upholstery, her arm resting on a gold-coloured cushion; an octagonal North African table is seen to the right of the painting. The screen behind is made of embroidered Japanese kimono silk.
Dimensions
  • Height: 102.2cm
  • Width: 115.2cm
  • Frane height: 133cm
  • Frame width: 145.5cm
Styles
Credit line
Purchased with Art Fund support and the Friends of the V&A
Object history
Purchased with the assistance of the Art Fund and the Friends of the V&A, 2003
Subject depicted
Summary
The sitter, Elfrida Ionides, was married to Luke Ionides, of the famous British family of art patrons. She wears a loose, flowing dress and amber beads. In 1881 the ornate sofa was illustrated in a book on advanced interior decoration. The screen is made of embroidered Japanese kimono silk. This setting and her costume epitomise the ideals of the Aesthetic Movement.
Bibliographic references
  • Evans, M. 2015, 'An Aesthetic sitter on an Empire sofa: William Blake Richmond’s portrait of Mrs Luke Ionides' in D. Dethloff; T. Murdoch; K. Sloan; with Caroline Elam Burning Bright: Essays in Honour of David Bindman. London: UCL Press, pp.167-175
  • Miller, Lesley Ellis, and Ana Cabrera Lafuente, with Claire Allen-Johnstone, eds. Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, 2021. ISBN 978-0-500-48065-6. This object features in the publication Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion (2021)
Collection
Accession number
E.1062:1, 2-2003

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Record createdSeptember 9, 2003
Record URL
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