Lady West Ridgeway, from the Actresses series (N245) issued by Kinney Brothers to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes 1890

Editor: This is Lady West Ridgeway, a photograph from the Actresses series, circa 1890, by Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company. It’s fascinating to think this was made to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes! What do you see in this image, looking at it with your expert eyes? Curator: The image speaks volumes about the cultural constructions of beauty and celebrity in the late 19th century. Consider the context: the rise of mass media and the commodification of the female image. Lady West Ridgeway's profile is almost iconographic in its precision. Note the Japonisme influence, perhaps an intentional alignment of the actress with exoticism, a marketing tool for this tobacco company. Editor: So, her image is a symbol connected to consumer culture of the time. It’s interesting how this little photograph carries so much. Curator: Precisely! What seems a simple portrait is embedded in a network of symbols. The “actress” herself is a construct. The gaze directed away from the viewer; it allows us to gaze *at* her, but not *connect*. Think about how the gaze has historically been deployed to express social hierarchy or encode the sitter with symbolic qualities, sometimes, almost religious or allegorical value. What do you notice about her presentation? Editor: The hair and jewelry certainly point to an elevated status, and the photograph makes it almost like a portrait in a museum! Curator: Yes, her presentation signifies wealth and societal importance. Even this small cigarette card participated in building cultural ideas around identity and consumer desire. The use of photography adds another layer; supposedly ‘capturing’ her essence, available for purchase. It is the commercializing of beauty and accessibility. Editor: That’s an amazing connection. Now I can see it's not just a portrait. Curator: Indeed. Symbols, context, meaning! It shows us the enduring power of the image.