Axel Paulsen, Skater, from World's Champions, Series 2 (N29) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes 1888

This is a chromolithograph, one of a series made by Allen & Ginter for their cigarette packages. The image, printed on a small card, shows the skater Axel Paulsen, and was made to be collected. Chromolithography was an innovative printing process in the nineteenth century, and offered a cheap way to reproduce images in color. The process involved using multiple lithographic stones, one for each color, and then layering them on top of each other to create a complete image. The result was not exactly high art, but it was affordable and appealing. These cards were a form of advertising, certainly, but they were also a reflection of a new economy of leisure. By putting images of athletes into circulation, Allen & Ginter were selling a lifestyle as much as tobacco. Consider all the labor that went into this small card: the growing of tobacco, the making of paper and ink, the work of the printing press, and the distribution of the product. It’s a reminder that even the most ephemeral image is the product of a great deal of making.