Louis James in Italian Costume of the 15th Century, from the set Actors and Actresses, Second Series (N71) for Duke brand cigarettes 1888 - 1890

Curator: Good morning. I am quite tickled by this miniature: “Louis James in Italian Costume of the 15th Century.” Part of a larger set, “Actors and Actresses, Second Series (N71)” created as promotional material for Duke brand cigarettes sometime between 1888 and 1890. I imagine it nestled amongst velvet and tobacco leaves. Editor: Hmm, “tickled” is interesting… For me, it's the flatness of it all that strikes me first. Everything feels very deliberately posed and presented. But yes, a kind of quiet, antiquated elegance, although, the promotional origins do undermine the “serious portrait” vibe. Curator: Precisely! The contrast between the highfalutin costume and the banal purpose. Almost feels like an absurdist theatre piece, wouldn't you agree? Look at his eyes, distant, lost… maybe wondering if the pay was good? And those slightly smudged colors—coloured pencil, right? Giving him this dreamy, unreal aura. Editor: Right! Coloured pencil. Although drawing, engraving, and then chromolithography were probably also involved in its creation. This ties into the issues of authenticity, I think, right? Here is an actor dressed up *as* someone in history reproduced as a print. Then sold as something totally separate – advertisement! Layers and layers of artifice. It also strikes me that representing actors like this reinforced existing class structures, making artistry look dignified and highbrow. Curator: Or a desperate attempt at adding "class" to a deadly product, wouldn’t you say? One can’t help but imagine the smoke swirling around those powdered cheeks. Tell me more about that class perspective, though. Does it connect with his… costume? Editor: Absolutely! The Italian Renaissance signaled cultural capital, suggesting learning and sophistication, something desired, maybe, by the emerging middle classes eager to collect and emulate. This advertisement almost serves as an aspiration: consume our cigarettes, become more like "him." Although I bet that "him" wasn’t even Italian! Curator: (Laughs) Right! A fabricated representation of a fabricated ideal. Even that tiny plume jutting from his cap has a slightly deflated quality. And the awkward necklace just hanging there, like an afterthought. It’s all just so wonderfully… pathetic! I mean, slightly sad! Editor: Well, I find his detached gaze somewhat troubling too! The male gaze in itself – given the ways he, and probably this imaginary consumer, is invited to dominate, in ways which would also define turn of the century gender and sexual identities… All condensed into a cigarette card! Curator: Food for thought indeed. Makes you wonder who all those men "in Italian costume" really were back then. I think, if anything, this tiny artwork captures our never ending quest for authenticity in a world of artificiality. It is a bittersweet symphony. Editor: Yes! Authenticity is perpetually performed, sold and re-packaged – even back then in those smoke-filled, highly structured drawing rooms. Thank you for inviting us to re-consider this cultural snapshot.