O'er an Oar, from the Jokes series (N87) for Duke brand cigarettes 1890

Editor: This is "O'er an Oar, from the Jokes series (N87) for Duke brand cigarettes," dating to 1890. It’s a small print of a drawing, made with coloured pencils and watercolors. The fellow in the boat seems to be in quite a predicament! How do you interpret this work? Curator: It’s fascinating how a seemingly simple image like this can reveal so much about its time. Cigarette cards like these were immensely popular and served as both advertising and collectables. But let's think about who this image targets and what kind of values it promotes. What assumptions does it make about its audience's sense of humour and leisure activities? Editor: Well, it's a fairly harmless image, almost slapstick, which might have been a widely accessible form of humor back then. Was this a way to normalize tobacco use? Curator: Exactly! We see a young, presumably white, man enjoying a leisure activity, immediately associating smoking with relaxation, fun, and an aspirational lifestyle. This image normalizes and perhaps even glamorizes tobacco use, particularly for a specific demographic, masking potential health risks. Editor: I hadn't considered it that way. It's chilling how these images subtly shaped perceptions and habits. Curator: And we must also consider the working class: were they welcome in these leisured scenarios? How does the artwork reinforce the division of the social classes at the time, or even perpetuate stereotypes? This reveals the underlying power dynamics and assumptions present within even seemingly innocent popular culture artifacts. Do you see now how it connects to larger societal power dynamics? Editor: Absolutely. The card reflects a very specific and limited viewpoint. I’ll never look at these little images the same way again! Curator: Nor will I! It is a fine case-study for visual and critical thinking!