Mlle. Vivian, Paris, from the Actors and Actresses series (N171) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1886 - 1890

This small albumen silver print of Mlle. Vivian in Paris, was produced by Goodwin & Company as part of the Actors and Actresses series for Old Judge Cigarettes. Notice how the composition creates a sense of drama. The figure of Mlle. Vivian is sprawled across the foreground, her body at an angle, drawing the eye from left to right. The monochromatic sepia tone unifies the scene, yet it also lends a sense of age and perhaps a melancholic air. The pose is theatrical, and the tension created by the off-balance composition adds to the narrative ambiguity of the image. What event has unfolded? The formal elements of composition and tone function not just aesthetically but also as a suggestion of a larger narrative that the viewer is invited to contemplate.