Trapeze, Flying Jump, from the Gymnastic Exercises series (N77) for Duke brand cigarettes 1887

Curator: Oh my, what an unusual sight! It reminds me of a vibrant, yet slightly unsettling, dream sequence. The acrobat looks as if she is about to twist the whole room like an elastic. Editor: Yes, it certainly grabs your attention. What we’re looking at is a coloured pencil drawing printed for W. Duke, Sons & Co. cigarette cards in 1887. The title of the artwork is "Trapeze, Flying Jump," part of the Gymnastic Exercises series. Curator: Cigarette cards! Imagine collecting athletic feats between puffs. But, more precisely, what symbolism is evoked for you? The colour, the figure. Tell me about it as if you could dream yourself into the imagery... Editor: The acrobat almost becomes an allegory for progress itself, her reach toward the trapeze symbolizing aspiration. Note that the artist focuses less on muscularity. We are shown more her clothing: red stockings and the quaint puffed pantaloons which signal a body modified by the pressures of expectation. Curator: Beautifully put. And, her face is tilted with that expression of complete serenity, despite the implied daring of the pose, doesn't she? Almost an archaic smile... Does the composition speak of danger for you, I wonder? Because the more I look at it, the more unreal and yet utterly focused her dream seems. Editor: Perhaps danger, but of the romantic kind. She exists, in a way, to be seen performing the risk. The athleticism is secondary, the spectacle prime. Look how the colours pop-- almost lurid against the washed background! It captures a feeling— a fleeting glimpse— which hints to the world beyond our immediate experience. A bit daring for cigarette paraphernalia of the day? Curator: It's like a tiny, pocket-sized narrative ready to unfold! The texture of coloured pencil is incredible given that its intention wasn't fine art to start with... There's a weird poetry in the banality, if that makes sense. Like those glimpses into hidden lives you get on old film. Editor: Indeed! A glimpse of striving, expectation, commerce, and a time when even dreams were collectible between fingers. The power of ephemeral images—so unexpected, yet full of lasting questions.