Portrait of June Elvidge

June Elvidge was a silent film actress with a relatively brief but highly productive career. Elvidge established her character in "The Lure of Women" (1915) as a seductress and was then on primarily cast in roles as vamps or vixens. She starred in over 70 silent films before the sound era, after which her film career declined and resurfaced in a series of vaudeville theater performances before she retired from show business altogether in 1925. In this photograph, Elvidge is presumably nude from the waist up with her torso turned away from the camera. The vantage point is lower than usual, eliciting a downward gaze from Elvidge that emphasizes the sensuality already communicated through her lowered eyelids and pursed lips. Hixon interrupts her gaze with enhanced eyelashes, likely applied in the development process of the photograph, in effect creating a screen across her eye. The curls of her hair fall down her back and grow out of focus into a smoky veil across her upper back also attributed to Hixon's photo manipulations.
Portrait fo June Elvidge
Inventory
Collection Number
17612
Building
Current Location
Storage Room 303
Floor
Lower Level/Vault
Description
Details
This is a sepia-toned photograph of actress June Elvidge.
Artist
Framed
Yes
 - Glass
Width
1 inch
Height
31 inches
Length
25 inches
Donor
Donor Name
James R. and Joyce A. Finely and Charles David and Linda Hixon
Library Owns
No
Permissions
Reproduce the Work in Library publications/publicity, including film or videotape
Yes
Reproduce
Library has Photography Rights
Yes
Photograph
Permit the general public to photograph the work
Yes
Slides/Video