Introduction. The subject of the study is ekphrasis in the ideological and artistic system of the novel by I. S. Turgenev “On the Eve”. Ekphrasis as a unit of the creative process is studied in modern philological science, but ekphrastic reproductions as a certain text category in the novel by I. S. Turgenev “On the Eve” have not been the subject of special consideration, which is what this study contributes to. The purpose of the undertaken study is to identify and function ekphrasis in the artistic system of Turgenev's novel. The work uses comparative ‒ contrastive and structural-descriptive methods of analysis, which allow us to analyze different types of ekphrasis and its functional purpose in the ideological structure of the novel “On the Eve”. Ekphrastic novel discourse is characterized by an integrating property: it appears in a combination of musical, architectural and pictorial ekphrasis. The ekphrasis of Verdi's opera organically enters the philosophical context of the novel, is implied in the plot dynamics, causing a certain correlation between the fates of the heroes of “On the Eve” with the semantic situation of the musical text. The synthetic nature of the descriptions allows us to discover the hidden meaning, to give an expansive problematic interpretation of the work. Musical ekphrasis contributes to the creation of a philosophical context in the novel, the transfer of the internal state of the heroes, their complex psychological drama. The local space of Venice appears as a complex semiotic system that performs a world-modeling function. Architectural ekphrasis is a sacred symbol: in the philosophical context of the novel, it is the source of expression of the author's maxim about the instantaneousness of human existence against the backdrop of the beauty of immortal Venice. Picturesque ekphrasis is organically included in the visual description of the city: the “evoked” canvases of Canaletti and Guardi act as a material and figurative embodiment of the cultural and historical space of Venice.