Card Number 189, Gertrude Gardner, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-2) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cross Cut Cigarettes 1880s

This is Card Number 189, Gertrude Gardner, made by W. Duke, Sons & Co. as part of their Actors and Actresses series, to promote Cross Cut Cigarettes, between 1870 and 1920. During this period, the commodification of images of women for commercial purposes became increasingly common. Actresses like Gertrude Gardner, who embodied both talent and visual appeal, were strategically used to promote products. The card reveals complex interactions between gender, performance, and consumer culture. Gardner’s attire is both suggestive and restrictive, encapsulating the era’s conflicting attitudes towards female sexuality and public presentation. These cards served not only to advertise cigarettes but also to create and circulate particular ideals of beauty and femininity. They invite us to consider how such images contributed to broader societal expectations and judgments about women. It makes me think of the emotional labor involved in conforming to societal standards of beauty and the role of performance in navigating public life as a woman.