Take Ionescu's enduring admiration and support for countries in the Anglosphere and for the British Empire was reflected in contemporary popular culture. As Xeni indicated, Ionescu was depicted in satirical works either as an English "sportsman" or "an immense cylinder wrapped up in the stars of the American flag"). Ionescu's popularity before and during World War I also made him the center of a cultural trend, and the subject of imitation. According to Tudor Arghezi, he was personally responsible for raising the prestige of Ştefan Luchian, an impoverished painter, being among the first ever to purchase more than one of the latter's paintings.