Alma Stanley, from the Actors and Actresses series (N171) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1886 - 1890

This is a card depicting Alma Stanley, from the Actors and Actresses series, made by Goodwin & Company. It’s a lithograph, a printmaking process that relies on the drawn mark. But here, the hand is far removed. It’s all about mechanical reproduction, turning out these cards in vast numbers for insertion in cigarette packs. The card’s materiality really drives its meaning. Paper, of course, is cheap and light, perfect for mass distribution. The sepia tone gives it an antique feel, connecting the modern phenomenon of celebrity culture with older traditions of portraiture. Stanley herself looks away, perhaps symbolic of her status as a commodity: an image to be consumed, much like the cigarettes themselves. These cards speak volumes about the industrialization of leisure in the late 19th century, where even our idols become products. So, next time you light up, consider the complex relationship between labor, consumption, and the images that surround us. It is a reminder of how much the world of fine art and the world of industrial production have always needed each other.