Henry Carl "Hank" Gastright, Pitcher, Cleveland, from the Old Judge series (N172) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1889

Editor: This is a really fascinating albumen print from 1889, a baseball card of Henry Carl "Hank" Gastright made by Goodwin & Company for Old Judge Cigarettes. The sepia tone and the staged backdrop give it an oddly theatrical feel, considering it's advertising. What strikes you most about this image? Curator: What jumps out is the complex relationship between labor, leisure, and consumption embedded within this small photographic print. Albumen prints, produced through a process reliant on egg whites, were themselves products of extensive labor. Think about the albumen sourced, the darkroom work, and the printing process tied directly to the promotion of a consumable good – cigarettes. How does knowing that connection influence your perception of the image as "theatrical"? Editor: Well, I hadn't really considered the process like that, but I see what you mean. The artificial background now seems even more calculated, knowing the image is ultimately meant to drive cigarette sales. It almost feels exploitative. Curator: Exactly. These cards weren't just innocent images; they were commodities circulating within a system of production and consumption, blurring the lines between sport, art, and commerce. Consider too the social context: the rise of baseball as a professional sport intertwined with mass production and the expansion of consumer culture. Can this shift how you view Gastright in the picture? Editor: It does, yeah. He becomes less of an individual and more of a symbol, caught in the gears of this commercial machine. Almost a commodity himself. Curator: Precisely! And thinking about those intersections reveals so much about the society that produced this image and how leisure activities were rapidly becoming intertwined with consumerism. Editor: So, understanding the materiality and the process shifts the focus from Gastright the individual to the broader context of labor and consumption that his image embodies. It’s pretty eye-opening! Curator: Indeed. It encourages us to look beyond the surface and examine the underlying structures of power and production shaping our visual world.