Cora Tanner, from the Actresses series (N246), Type 1, issued by Kinney Brothers to promote Sporting Extra Cigarettes 1888 - 1892

This is a photograph of Cora Tanner, part of a series of actresses, produced by Kinney Brothers to promote Sporting Extra Cigarettes. Look at the gentle, upward gaze of Cora. This pose echoes ancient depictions of Venus, the goddess of love and beauty, whose gaze carries a similar sense of longing. The soft focus and delicate composition emphasize the feminine ideal, a motif that can be traced back through Renaissance paintings to classical sculptures. The very act of portraying actresses connects to older traditions of depicting muses and goddesses. Consider how the image’s creators used the psychoanalytic power of beauty and celebrity to engage viewers on a subconscious level, subtly associating their product with the allure of fame. This method of linking beauty to a product is a marketing strategy we still see today, a continuation of this symbol, transformed and repurposed for new contexts.