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

Editor: Here we have "Eva Selbie," a photo print from the "Actresses" series made around 1890 by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company. It’s… striking. Almost feels like a lost dream, faded into sepia tones. What grabs you when you look at this, and how does the context of a tobacco ad change our perception? Curator: Lost dreams, eh? That's a lovely turn of phrase! For me, it’s all in the knowing glance she gives the viewer. It’s both intimate and somehow… transactional. Knowing it's connected to selling cigarettes certainly taints the sentiment, turning that intimacy into something more manufactured. Did the actress, Eva, have a say in this image? Editor: That’s a perspective I hadn’t fully considered. I suppose I was too caught up in the surface aesthetic! You know, the flowing hair, soft lighting… but the ‘transactional’ element you mentioned makes a lot of sense. It adds another layer. Do you see elements of theatre, given that she was an actress? Curator: Absolutely. Notice the gesture of her hand, drawing the garment, the slightly tilted head, it’s all very consciously composed to engage the viewer. I feel it goes deeper, in a time before film reigned supreme, to capture lightning in a bottle, a feeling one wanted to possess. She exists here as more than just Eva Selbie, doesn't she? She is an "actress", which could become part of one's everyday fantasy life... for the price of a cigarette! Editor: Fascinating! So, a way to feel closer to fame through a small purchase. That’s quite brilliant and also unsettling! Thanks for sharing these ideas. Curator: My pleasure! It's pieces like this that make us rethink celebrity and commercialism in an entirely new light. Perhaps even go light one up while you mull it over? I don't know... something feels sacrilegious about this idea, but... perhaps that too is part of its spell?