Bender, Philadelphia, American League, from the White Border series (T206) for the American Tobacco Company 1909 - 1911

Curator: This is "Bender, Philadelphia, American League," a baseball card from the American Tobacco Company's White Border series, dating from 1909 to 1911. What strikes you most about this small drawing and print? Editor: It has an iconic feel. Like, this is such a quintessential image of early baseball. I’m curious, how do we see something like a baseball card, a relatively small and mass-produced piece, through a lens of art history and social context? Curator: Exactly! It’s crucial to situate these cards within the broader narrative of the American Tobacco Company, their marketing strategies and what that reveals about early 20th-century consumerism and its targets. Editor: Like how this ties into industrialization and marketing strategies? Curator: Precisely. Consider the target demographic. These cards weren't just about baseball; they were about building brand loyalty, potentially among children who were encouraged to buy tobacco products. Who was included and excluded in these images, and why? Whose stories get told, and whose are erased? This helps us discuss issues of race, class, and labor at the time. Does the seemingly innocuous baseball card begin to feel like something more loaded now? Editor: Absolutely, framing the image this way, considering its context, it definitely shifts its meaning. Curator: This one card encapsulates so many historical complexities regarding labor, capitalism, and popular culture. It really exemplifies how everyday objects can hold profound meaning when interrogated critically. Editor: This gives me so much to consider about the impact and intention of art production! Thank you.