Blanch Howard, from the Actresses series (N246), Type 1, issued by Kinney Brothers to promote Sporting Extra Cigarettes 1888 - 1892

This is an albumen print of Blanch Howard, from the Actresses series, made by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company. These cards were printed as collectible ephemera, and came packaged with cigarettes. The albumen process involves coating paper with egg white, then with silver nitrate, making it sensitive to light. The negative is then placed on the prepared paper and exposed to sunlight. What we see here is not only the image of Blanch Howard, but also the effect of a specific industrial process. The albumen gives the photograph a distinctive sheen and tonal range. Consider the vast scale of production necessary for a company like Kinney Brothers to produce these cards. The company could produce a highly detailed image through technological means, and put it in the hands of countless consumers. The mass production of images like these transformed not only the economics of photography, but the culture of celebrity itself.