Morning Glories: Bonds of Affection, from the series Floral Beauties and Language of Flowers (N75) for Duke brand cigarettes 1892

This small, chromolithographic card, part of the American Tobacco Company's series for Duke cigarettes, presents a romantic vision through its composition, colors and symbolic elements. The soft pastels and diffused light create a nostalgic and idealized atmosphere. At the centre, a woman is framed by morning glories, their blooms echoing the curve of her face. The lines and shapes guide our eyes in a harmonious visual rhythm. The flowers are not merely decorative; they are integral to the card’s semiotic structure, encoding meanings of affection and beauty. This piece also functions as a cultural artifact. It reflects the era's fascination with categorizing and understanding the natural world through systems of signs, and hints at how commercial enterprises drew upon these structures to imbue products with cultural value. Notice how the design uses formal elements to convey both the aesthetic and symbolic content. The composition and color palette are deliberately constructed to evoke associations of beauty, sentiment, and perhaps, a yearning for the ephemeral nature of affection, thus prompting ongoing cultural interpretations.