Card Number 154, Miss Jarbeau, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-2) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cross Cut Cigarettes 1880s

Curator: At first glance, it feels…theatrical, doesn't it? A little naughty, perhaps? Editor: Exactly! Let’s unpack that. This is Card Number 154, featuring Miss Jarbeau, as part of the "Actors and Actresses" series. W. Duke, Sons & Co. created it in the 1880s as an advertisement for their Cross Cut Cigarettes. Curator: So, not exactly high art. More… ephemera? But even ephemera holds symbolic weight. Her pose, that confident, slightly challenging gaze... and the costume, a pseudo-military jacket paired with… something less formal. Editor: It's pure marketing, designed to associate their cigarettes with glamour and desire. Look at the positioning—the cigarette branding placed prominently alongside her body. We have to acknowledge the deeply gendered nature of these images. Miss Jarbeau, likely a stage performer, becomes a symbol for the consumer pleasure offered by the product. Curator: I see her gesture, that slight extension of the arms, as inviting— almost iconic in a way. Think of other beckoning figures throughout art history… She embodies an archetype of allure and accessibility. Her outfit, what you called less formal—for me, it has to do with memory, referencing various things I've seen over time. Editor: Memory layered on memory… But it’s important to consider her agency within this framework. How much control did she have over this image, its distribution, its meaning? Actresses, especially then, faced immense social pressure and economic realities. This seemingly harmless card becomes a site of negotiation between performer, company, and audience. Curator: It certainly points to larger societal views regarding women and performance at that moment in time, as a sign for how far women have evolved—it can reveal cultural beliefs about feminine appeal. Editor: Absolutely, this object—this little albumen print meant to be discarded with the cigarette pack—now speaks volumes about desire, commodification, and the power of images. Curator: Precisely. A fleeting commercial image, transformed into a potent historical artifact. Editor: Definitely forces us to confront the complex ways in which the female body is viewed and utilized in visual culture, even today.