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

This photograph of Minnie Renwood was made by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company as part of an advertising campaign. Note the flowing drapery that envelops the actress. This motif harkens back to ancient depictions of goddesses and muses, figures draped in classical robes to denote grace and divine inspiration. Consider the “Ecstasy of Saint Teresa” by Bernini, where similar drapery is used to convey religious rapture. The recurring motif of flowing fabric serves as a visual echo across centuries. It encapsulates a sense of heightened emotion and spiritual transport. The association of actresses with divine figures through this imagery is no accident; it elevates them to figures of reverence and allure. The gesture invites viewers to invest not just in a product but in a timeless ideal of beauty and artistic expression. A collective memory of antiquity is invoked, subconsciously imbuing the subject with an aura of the eternal feminine.