Decoration Day, United States, from the Holidays series (N80) for Duke brand cigarettes 1890

Editor: This chromolithograph from 1890 by W. Duke, Sons & Co. is called "Decoration Day, United States." The soft colours and the elegant woman arranging flowers evoke a sense of serene gentility. What does it say to you? Curator: This card, intended as a premium item to promote Duke brand cigarettes, reflects a specific moment in American consumer culture. Its existence tells us a great deal about the industrial printing processes available, the target demographic of smokers, and how the idealized image of women and remembrance was used to market a product. Consider the materiality: mass-produced paper, cheap inks...how does this contrast with the delicate subject matter? Editor: So you are saying that the material used and its function as advertisement shapes how we interpret its representation of Decoration Day? Curator: Precisely. How the image was consumed speaks to the priorities and aspirations of the era. The card trivializes mourning by packaging it with tobacco consumption and collectible consumerism. Look closely: even the idealized lady embodies a capitalist ideal by buying in to fashion trends. Do you see now how its material existence gives us context for social class at the time? Editor: Absolutely! It's interesting to consider it not just as a pretty image, but as a commodity produced within a specific system. It reveals how manufacturers contributed to shaping values. Curator: It is the connection of industrial materials and practices that enable an intimate look into an artistic choice that serves the cultural norm and economic success of a corporation. Editor: Thanks. I'll never see these old advertising cards the same way. Curator: Nor will I. Thinking of materials, manufacturing and intended user will inform my perspective from now on.