Beaver, from the Quadrupeds series (N21) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes 1890

Editor: Here we have “Beaver” from the Quadrupeds series, created by Allen & Ginter Cigarettes in 1890. It’s a print, a coloured-pencil drawing to be exact. I’m immediately struck by how detailed and almost scientific the rendering is, despite being essentially an advertisement. What's your take on this image? Curator: What interests me is not so much the animal itself, but the materials and labor embedded in this seemingly simple image. This was a mass-produced card, included in cigarette packs. It's a small piece, but involved several processes – drawing, color separation, printing. It points to industrialization’s impact on art and consumption. Editor: So, you are saying it challenges the traditional idea of fine art because of its mass-produced nature? Curator: Precisely. These cards blur the line between art and commerce. They were created for profit, designed to entice people to buy cigarettes. The "art" here serves a very specific material purpose – increasing sales. And consider the audience - a broad public newly exposed to images of the world through this readily available format. Editor: That's a great point. It also makes you wonder about the labor involved. Who were the artists, the printers, the factory workers? Curator: Exactly! We should think about how they made them, under what conditions, and how this type of art changed popular tastes. How does seeing the beaver represented here change our understanding or exploitation of the natural world? Editor: That gives me a completely new perspective. I hadn’t considered how deeply connected art, labor, and industry could be in something so seemingly simple. Curator: Looking at it materially provides a much richer understanding than simply admiring the animal. There's a whole system of production and consumption behind this "Beaver."