Albert Ludovici Jnr

1852 - 1932

Albert Ludovici Jnr, a confidant of Whistler and Cézanne, was a painter of great repute and influence in the art world of his time. He painted society scenes in the cities which he frequented; London with its Victorian influence and Paris during the Art Nouveau period. 'The Musical Party' is of this genre.

Ludovici exhibited his paintings extensively between 1884 and 1932 after gaining membership of the Society of British Artists in 1881.

Paintings by Lodovici Jnr are well sought after and have sold at some of the most prestigious auction houses in the world including Christies (UK), Sotheby's (UK), Bonhams (UK), Gray's (USA), Waddington's (Canada) and Shapes (UK).

Ludovici was widely recognised as having been influenced by the great artist James Abbott McNeill Whistler (of Whistler's Mother fame) who he classed as a friend. In 1888 he resigned from the executive committee of the Society of British Artists in support of Whistler who was deposed as president by Wyke Bayliss. Ludovici later persuaded Whistler to allow Cézanne to exhibit with the International Society of Sculptors, Painters, and Gravers in Paris. Whistler was chairman of the ISSPG at the time.

Albert Ludovici Snr

1820 - 1894

Albert Ludovici senior, the father of Albert Ludovici junior, was a painter of genre society scenes and clearly influenced the work of his son. Indeed the paintings of father and son are sometimes only reliably distinguished by diffences in their signatures (see note below).

can be difficult to distinguish. However except for their signatures which are different (see below).

Albert Ludovici Snr lived primarily in Paris but spent much of his time in London. Again, this Paris-London lifestyle was enjoyed by Albert Ludovici Jnr.

Albert Ludovici Snr exhibited his paintings widely, including the Royal Academy in London from 1854 to his death in 1894. As treasurer of the Society of British Artists, he was influential on the art world of his day.

Signatures of Jnr and Snr

Premier Paintings is grateful to Caroline Ludovici Jones, great granddaughter of Ludovici Jnr, for the following contribution:

The signatures of Ludovici Jnr and Ludovici Snr are very easy to distinguish. Albert Snr never as far as our family knows signed his name in full. He used  a monogram with a large C for Carl (which was actually his first name) incasing a capital A and L.

Albert Jnr on the other hand,  always wrote out Ludovici in full, and his earlier paintings usually had an A first. After his father died he seems to have dropped the A.

PP