Hettie Duncan, from the Actresses series (N203) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co. 1889

Curator: The artwork before us is a photograph from 1889, "Hettie Duncan, from the Actresses series (N203)" by Wm. S. Kimball & Co. These were, rather intriguingly, trade cards included with cigarette packs. Editor: My first impression? A touch of melancholy hangs in the air. It’s more intimate than grand, tinged with a vulnerable feeling despite its overtly staged nature. Curator: It's hard to miss the historical context: a performative image intended to be circulated widely as promotional material. I wonder, though, about the construction of femininity being marketed alongside tobacco consumption here, especially as the gaze directed toward the viewer feels self-aware. Editor: I find the emphasis on adornment very striking. Notice the carefully placed flower and delicate ruffle; together, they feel charged. Then there’s the curious gesture of the subject adjusting her stocking—an emblem, perhaps, of allure tinged with mundane reality. The cigarette company could be conjuring feelings of prosperity. Curator: Precisely. One must consider these photographic images as forms of cultural capital, deployed to associate consumption of tobacco products with beauty and the aspirations to theatrical celebrity. We are seeing the commodification of beauty and the association of this image to status within a societal system which objectifies and oppresses people for financial gain. Editor: And don't overlook the enduring nature of such objects, even humble ephemera like these cards. The actress has become an icon. I find myself trying to understand her gaze and the relationship it implies between the actress, viewer, and objectified product. Curator: A fascinating thought experiment, given the layered historical and social dynamics. Her image and self as representation has been decoupled from agency or reality through the patriarchal structures that govern capitalist motivations for mass media communication. Editor: Thinking about what we have revealed in this artwork’s subtle nuances, it suggests there is always another image layer beneath, awaiting rediscovery. Curator: Agreed; by revisiting images critically, in effect we bring back to life what has previously gone unseen.