5865

Mrs David Kennedy, née Elinor Saunders 1915

Half-length to the left looking full face to the viewer, wearing a black chiffon stole over a black dress with a white lace shawl, the stole draped over the back of her head, a wide black choker around her neck, a small ruby brooch at her breast and matching drop earrings

Oil on canvas, 79.4 x 63.5 cm (31 ¼ x 25 in.)

Inscribed lower right: P.A. de László / LONDON 1915 Sept.   

Laib L7843(5) / C14(12A)  

NPG  Album 1915-16, p. 70

Private Collection

De László painted nine portraits of the sitter’s family, including her two daughters, Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon [13201] in 1913, and Elinor, Mrs Clayton Glyn in 1914 [5361] [5359] and again in 1927 [5363]. Her two grandchildren by Elinor were also painted, Margot in 1923 [4650] and 1924 [4643] and Juliet in 1924 [7744] and 1925 [7748]. A copy of the present portrait was made by Juliet, which remains in the collection of a descendant of the sitter.

Elinor Saunders was born in 1841, daughter of Colonel Thomas Saunders of Wellington County, Ontario and Lucy Willcocks of Palmerston, Dublin. Her father was the first magistrate of Wellington County. Their house Summerhill, overlooking the town of Guelph, still stands, though the surrounding farmlands were developed in the 20th century. Guelph was founded by John Galt in 1827 and designed by him to resemble a European city centre, with squares, broad main streets and narrow side streets. As a member of one of the leading families of the area, Elinor’s upbringing was formal. Much attention was given to female accomplishments, dress, and etiquette, all of which she passed on to her own daughters.  

She married Douglas David Sutherland (1838-1865) on 18 January 1860. He was a civil engineer and they moved to London, where their daughter Lucy was born in 1863, and then to Jersey where Elinor was born in 1864. David died of typhoid fever shortly after Elinor’s birth and the family returned to Guelph.

In 1871 Elinor married David Kennedy (1810-1888). They moved with her two daughters to his family home, Balgregan Castle, in his native Scotland. From 1874 they lived in Jersey in an effort to alleviate her husband’s chronic bronchitis, but his health continued to deteriorate. He died in 1888 at their London home at 58 Drayton Gardens, Kensington. Elinor inherited a substantial amount of money, which allowed her to live comfortably in a rented a house in Davies Street, Mayfair.

Elinor Kennedy was remembered by her family as heroic in the support of her daughters’ careers. She did much of the stitching work in the early days of Lucy’s fashion house ‘Lucile’ and cared for Elinor’s children while she wrote books to earn her living and raise her young family. Her later years were spent living in Wales with her granddaughter Juliet. She would regularly read aloud with her great grandchildren seated around her. She died in 1937 in her 97th year.

KF 2013