The Union of Russian Painters in Constantinople existed for less than two years, but in that short space of time did a tremendous amount of work. This was mainly thanks to the enthusiasm and unrestrained energy of the members of the Union, refugees from the Russian Empire.
Despite the fact that by the end of 1921 at least six successful exhibitions had been organised by the Association of Russian Painters, on 1 January 1922 the association was officially turned into an independent organisation called the Union of Russian Painters in Constantinople. The membership of the Union was constantly changing, but its permanent leaders were apparently Wladimir Ivanoff and Dimitri Ismailovitch (Kravchenko and Fridolin were mentioned as secretaries). Wladimir Stepanovich Ivanoff was a founder and chairman of the Union. He delegated his responsibilities only once, to Nikolai Kalmykoff, in the summer of 1922 when he was ill. Dimitri Ismailovitch was known as the “organizer of exhibitions”. According to a newspaper article that appeared on 3 January 1923, these leaders' powers were extended until the departure of Wladimir Ivanoff to America. The names of the following artists-members of the Union were listed in the Farewell almanac: Tatiana Alexinsky-Loukina, Astafiev (Astori), Vladimir Bobritsky, Roman Bilinski, Nikolai Saretzki, Wladimir Ivanoff, Dimitri Ismailovitch, Nikolai Kalmykoff, Kaissaroff, Nikolai Peroff, Sabaneeff, Fedoroff. There were, of course, more members (for instance, Nikolai Saraphanoff and Iraida Barry) and, as mentioned above, they were constantly changing. As an example, Eugenia S. Bumgardner mentioned a young refugee girl of twenty with the surname Shaumine who while in Istanbul "belonged to that ambitious Society – the 'Union of Painters'" (Baumgardner 1925, 206).
It is known that the Union had a charter and that the artists were issued with membership cards (they featured an elegant seal with a scorpion). New members were elected by ballot. When newspaper reports suggested that some people not related to the Union were trying to pass themselves off as members for personal gain, the Union reminded the paper's readers that members have special membership cards with the seal and signature of Ivanoff. The Union held regular artists meetings at which current issues were discussed and reports from the exhibition commission were heard. Announcements concerning exhibitions, the return of exhibits and payment for sold works were regularly published in the Russian newspaper in Istanbul, Presse du Soir / Vecherniaia Gazeta. In addition, honorary members of the Union were periodically elected (the first was Mayak’s director and American public figure Mr. Areson, in June 1922, followed by Foster Waterman Stearns and Martha Stearns, in August 1922, Chief of Staff of Am. N.F. in Turkey Philip R. Hepburn, in December 1922, the director of the Société Immobilière Max Pompée and the secretary of the American Embassy Gardiner Howland Shaw, in 1923, the director of the Sanayi-i Nefise Mektebi or School/Academy of Fine Arts in Istanbul, Cemil Cem). These meetings were held mainly in the evenings at Mayak (which closed in the fall of 1922) and, according to one source, also at the Dülber cafe. In 1922, thanks to the support of Foster Waterman Stearns and his wife, drawing classes were held in the Union’s studio, located near Galatasaray Square (Küçük Yazıcı 4), from seven to ten pm. In the same studio, during November and December of 1922, the registration of artists wishing to move to America was carried out. At the end of 1922, the studio relocated briefly to the Taksim military barracks, but the artists were once again painting portraits and nudes in Küçük Yazıcı Street by January 1923. Union members paid 50 kuruş per month to work in the studio; non-members paid 10 kuruş per visit.
The chairman of the Union, Wladimir Stepanovich Ivanoff, organised “Drawing Thursdays” in his flat (among those who attended were the painter Nikolai Vasilieff, the architect Nikolai Vasiliev (Nicholas B. Vassilieve), Nikolai Saretzki, Nikolai Becker, Vladimir Bobritsky, Fridolin, Khudyakov, Pinegin, as well as many others). “At first they painted everything from life (models were usually invited to attend), then they drank tea and heatedly discussed the burning issues of the day” (Novitskiy, “Pamyati hudojnika V.S. Ivanova”, 1965). It must be said that the Union was the success it was largely thanks to Ivanoff. While he was chairman, “the Union helped its members find work, supported them in difficult times, and did not allow to be discouraged those who were tired and weakened" (Novitskiy, “Pamyati hudojnika V.S. Ivanova”, 1965).
The Union put on (presumably) nine exhibitions at Mayak including First Russian émigré artists in Istanbul exhibition (two of them solo, by Dimitri Ismailovitch and Nikolai Saretzki), two solo exhibitions by Nikolai Becker at Pera Palace, two major exhibitions at Taksim military barracks (one of them - Exhibition of Russian émigré artists at Taksim Military Barracks) and one major exhibition at one of the YMCA halls in Pera/Beyoğlu. Union members were engaged in a variety of types of fine art, so the Union’s exhibitions were definitely not homogeneous. Here is what Eugenia S. Bumgardner wrote about the Union: "In the evenings, after long hours of work, the members of this Society painted in a room rented for them by a generous American. They gave monthly exhibitions in the Russian Myark [Mayak]. These were crowded with appreciative Russians – unable to do more than encourage the artists by their presence – and occasionally visited by an American, an Englishman, or a Frenchman, able to purchase a picture" (Baumgardner 1925, 206–207). In the summer of 1923 some of its members left the Union because of disagreements, others because of the departure of the Russian-speaking émigrés from Istanbul to the United States and other countries, and so, sadly, the Union folded.