Lansing Rowan, from the Actresses series (N245) issued by Kinney Brothers to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes 1890

This sepia photograph, part of Kinney Brothers’ Actresses series, captures Lansing Rowan with hands clasped gently before her, adorned with flowers. The gesture, seemingly simple, resonates with a deep history. Consider the ‘modest Venus’ pose, where hands cover the breasts. This gesture transcends time, appearing in classical sculptures and Renaissance paintings, reflecting modesty and an awareness of being observed. Yet, in Rowan's case, the flowers replace the focus of the gesture. Here, the flowers, symbols of ephemeral beauty and perhaps even a coded language of love, take center stage. The collective memory of such poses imbues this photograph with an aura of both allure and restraint, a potent combination that speaks to the complex role of actresses in the cultural imagination. The actress, then and now, becomes a vessel through which societal desires and anxieties are expressed and negotiated.