Miss Fannie Summerville, from the Actresses series (N245) issued by Kinney Brothers to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes 1890

Editor: Here we have a portrait of Miss Fannie Summerville, an actress, from around 1890. It was created by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company as a promotional piece, likely a photograph printed as part of a series. It feels incredibly staged, but also, I'm oddly drawn in by her expression. What catches your eye when you look at this piece? Curator: Well, initially, I'm tickled by the sheer *theatricality* of it all. She’s practically bursting forth, a gilded lily on the cusp of something… or perhaps she's wilting ever so slightly. Note the attention to detail, down to the frippery in her hair. But also consider: it's a *cigarette card*. Editor: That's surprising. It feels almost… too much for a simple advertisement. Curator: Ah, but is it simple? The 1890s were a fascinating, contradictory time. On one hand, stiff corsets and rigid social codes, and on the other, this… brazen self-promotion using images of glamorous women. Do you see any other apparent contrasts or visual tensions at play? Editor: I guess… the sort of awkward composition? The eye isn't sure where to land. Also, the blending of fine art portraiture with cheap promotional material creates a weird feeling. Curator: Exactly! This little card captures that moment of transformation beautifully…or rather, like a slightly out-of-tune piano. The idealized image versus the realities of a performer's life, the burgeoning commercial culture versus the old guard, and the private consumption of this woman's image... it's a potent cocktail! I confess, I see a tragic heroine trying to escape a silent movie! It would all make me want to smoke, actually. Editor: That really sheds a new light on this image! It is far more complicated than a little advertisement. Curator: Yes. We've peeled back the layers of this tiny artwork, and who knew that such a complex story hides within the inky lines?