Charles Thomas "Charlie" Reilly, 3rd Base, St. Paul Apostles, from the Old Judge series (N172) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1889

Curator: This small print captures Charles "Charlie" Reilly in action for the St. Paul Apostles, dating back to 1889. It was originally included in the Old Judge Cigarettes series. It’s a photographic print. Editor: It's sepia-toned and wonderfully composed; something about the athlete's fixed stare juxtaposed with the soft background makes me feel pensive and nostalgic, as if contemplating a bygone era when baseball felt more like a poetic endeavor. Curator: Goodwin & Company were prolific publishers of these baseball cards. They used photography to capture players, capitalizing on the growing popularity of the sport. Think of it as a kind of proto-sports memorabilia market. Editor: Right, almost like performance art sold as trade bait. Do you suppose Charlie ever pondered his place in a larger societal game while on the pitcher's mound? This almost frozen-in-time state of capturing a dynamic athlete contrasts baseball’s true form – constant movement. It makes me reflect on how still images can’t capture the kinetic energy that truly defines sports. Curator: Exactly, baseball emerged in the 19th century as America was becoming more industrialized and urbanized; marketing was getting more sophisticated and there was a need to unite across difference. These cards offered a point of connection; in essence, a symbol for budding community identity. And the idealized portrait? Pure aspirational propaganda. Editor: It's that perfect blend of athleticism and early advertising… It feels less exploitative somehow, than current sponsorship culture – although, knowing the health impact of those Old Judge cigarettes puts a damper on any pure sentimentalism. Curator: It also opens up this discourse between representation and the marketplace, the romanticism we assign to art as being free of corruption from corporations doesn’t quite apply when examining its ties to industry. The idealized version of Reilly also doesn’t reflect much on its consumer; smoking was extremely common for men and these cards promoted baseball and cigarettes – almost an indirect promotion of American Masculinity itself! Editor: So it is both celebration and, in a sense, commodification… A slice of athletic history pressed into service. Thank you for guiding me through it; the experience stirred thoughts on past America as much as modern athletic culture. Curator: Absolutely. Seeing Reilly like this helps consider all the possible layers involved – legacy, aspiration, and capitalism, and, for me, to remember to actually go outside more.