Lillian Russell, from the Actors and Actresses series (N171) for Gypsy Queen Cigarettes 1886 - 1890

Editor: This is "Lillian Russell, from the Actors and Actresses series (N171) for Gypsy Queen Cigarettes," dating from around 1886 to 1890. It’s a print based on a photograph. There’s something melancholic about this portrait. Given its age, it seems quite fragile... Curator, what do you see when you look at it? Curator: Fragile is the perfect word! It whispers of a bygone era, doesn’t it? And the cigarette advertisement underneath is interesting because it ties beauty with commerce, doesn’t it? I sense that Lillian Russel must have embodied feminine ideals of beauty from this era. Also the damage gives it such a unique aura – like whispers of forgotten glamour… it’s strangely haunting. Does that make sense? Editor: It does, but the damage makes it a little hard to fully grasp the initial impression of glamour. Was it common to find cigarette ads printed on portraits like this? Curator: Good question! Back then, absolutely. These weren't considered "high art" but more like promotional cards. A bit like celebrity endorsements today. Mass-produced, aiming to connect the famous and fabulous with an everyday product. And in this context the imperfection is the point, like seeing old advertisements on walls today that seem beautiful in their decaying essence. I feel that it shows time moving… it asks if it truly captures what is really beauty. Does that add any perspectives? Editor: Yes, absolutely. It reframes it, making me think more about ephemerality. It is not the beautiful face, but rather, as time passes by what does beauty represent? I am definitely seeing something different than just fragility and melancholy. Curator: Exactly! The marks and imperfections give more to appreciate. A bit like life itself, wouldn’t you agree? There’s beauty in the cracks. Editor: Definitely, this has shifted my perspective! I would never imagine seeing the cigarette promotion that way before. It also provides additional context behind this print that moves away from "just a portrait," it also allows the question to what true beauty entails and encompasses as time goes by.