A Tough Chick, from the Jokes series (N87) for Duke brand cigarettes 1890

Editor: This whimsical piece, "A Tough Chick," from the Jokes series for Duke brand cigarettes, dates back to 1890. It’s a colored-pencil drawing, and something about the figure's audacity makes me chuckle. What can you tell me about this work? Curator: Notice how the artist uses animal attributes to depict human society; this is not new. Throughout art history, animals have often represented human characteristics, desires, or warnings. Consider the long-standing tradition of anthropomorphic imagery, found in folk tales to political satires. What do you make of the fact that it's used for advertising? Editor: Interesting! It feels like a caricature, but meant to charm consumers, I suppose. Is it meant to show how men and women should act? Curator: I think so, consider how visual signs create meaning. Look at the monocle, bowler hat, and cigar; these symbols coalesce to convey an upper-class man. Then it makes you wonder: why a chick, and why the word tough? It certainly adds an ironic flavor that piques interest. Do you find that interesting at all? Editor: I do. So, "tough" as in fashionable and up-to-date? Or as in actually resilient? And placing the "chick" in male clothing, while slightly amusing, adds complexity. Curator: Exactly! And complexity draws attention, doesn't it? Even now, the artwork triggers such considerations. Editor: This was unexpected, considering its status as advertisement. Thanks for showing me a new perspective. Curator: The past always has echoes we don’t quite hear. Hopefully now we are a bit closer.