Fannie Rice, from the Actresses series (N245) issued by Kinney Brothers to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes 1890

This photograph of Fannie Rice comes from a series of cigarette cards, produced by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company. These cards, chromolithographs in fact, were a popular form of advertising and collecting in the late 19th century, and give us insight into the modes of production and consumption of the time. The image itself is a photograph of Fannie Rice, an actress, likely taken in a studio. The sepia tone lends a sense of nostalgia and timelessness. The printing process involved creating multiple lithographic stones, one for each color, and layering them to achieve the final image. While the image shows her as an individual, it's also part of a much larger industrial process, designed to move consumer goods. Cards like these demonstrate the intersection of entertainment, advertising, and industrial production. Understanding the materials, making, and context is crucial to fully understand its place in both art and culture, blurring the line between collectible ephemera and something more.