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

This is a carte-de-visite of Yolande Wallace, from the Actresses series, created by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company in the late nineteenth century as a promotional item. The sepia tones evoke a bygone era and the image has a performative quality that begs our attention. The photograph presents Wallace in an elaborate pose on a faux tree branch, her gaze directed towards the viewer. The composition uses diagonals to create a dynamic but constructed sense of space. This manipulation of form hints at the artificiality inherent in both theatre and photography at the time. Consider how the soft focus and tonal range obscure fine detail, emphasizing instead the overall image and the idea of Yolande Wallace. It is not about the actress's individual likeness, but about the commodification of celebrity and the way images circulate in culture. This collapsing of depth and detail creates a visual flattening, characteristic of early photographic techniques. The image becomes a sign, divorced from its referent, and open to endless reproduction and interpretation.