Mlle. Nordrum, from the Actors and Actresses series (N45, Type 8) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes 1885 - 1891

Editor: So this is Mlle. Nordrum from the Actors and Actresses series by Allen & Ginter, printed sometime between 1885 and 1891. It looks like a photograph that has been reproduced as a print. It’s hard to put my finger on it, but it’s got a dreamy quality… what do you see in it? Curator: Dreamy is the perfect word! It whispers to me of fleeting beauty and manufactured celebrity. Imagine a world where actresses, like Mlle. Nordrum, became collectible commodities, tucked into cigarette packs. Don’t you think it's ironic that a medium like photography, often touted for its realism, here participates in the artifice of celebrity? Editor: Absolutely. I mean, she's posed, probably heavily made-up. Is there some comment on beauty standards baked into this kind of series? Curator: Undoubtedly! Think about the performative nature of beauty itself during this period – the elaborate costumes, the carefully constructed public image. It was all theatre, darling. And do you notice how the lighting softens every line, almost idealizing her? That alone shifts it away from stark reality, in my opinion. What's your take on how that impacts our reading of this card? Editor: It feels… curated. The photograph isn’t capturing reality as much as creating an ideal. Looking at this really shifts my thinking on portraiture. Curator: Indeed! Next time you light a cigarette, remember Mlle. Nordrum. Maybe her fleeting image held more power than the cigarette itself. Editor: I definitely will! I hadn’t considered celebrity as something literally packaged and sold like this. Fascinating.