Quinn, Catcher, Baltimore Orioles, from the Old Judge series (N172) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1889

This is a photographic print of Quinn, a catcher for the Baltimore Orioles, produced around 1889 by Goodwin & Company as part of the Old Judge Cigarettes series. It's a modest albumen print, created using a process that was central to the era's burgeoning mass culture. This isn’t fine art photography in the sense that we think of it today. It was born of a capitalist impulse: to sell more cigarettes. Note the Old Judge Cigarette Factory imprint, a blatant advertisement. Consider the labor involved: from the photographer making the image, to the darkroom workers processing it, to the laborers in the cigarette factory. These cards were churned out in vast quantities, and then discarded by most who bought them. Yet now, this unassuming object offers a fascinating snapshot of its time, a reminder of the relationship between art, industry, and everyday life.