Football, from the Games and Sports series (N165) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1889

Editor: This is "Football, from the Games and Sports series (N165) for Old Judge Cigarettes," made in 1889 by Goodwin & Company. It's a coloured-pencil drawing, I find it interesting to note the sport context used for cigarette advertisement. How do you see it? Curator: From a materialist perspective, it's crucial to recognize this isn't just art, it’s an advertisement printed on relatively cheap cardstock meant to be discarded. The colored pencil medium itself points to mass production techniques; not fine art, but utilitarian design circulated within consumer culture. Notice how the drawing and print media intersect here as labor, production and the culture around commodified images in the 19th century. Editor: So, the cigarette card's very existence speaks to a wider story of industrialization and consumption? Curator: Exactly. And consider the imagery: sport associated with leisure class and then the portrait with consumer desires for attractiveness. Do those material choices tell us about social stratification or even class aspiration within this society? It challenges art's perceived uniqueness when mass produced alongside tobacco products meant for common circulation. Editor: That’s a fascinating insight! So it's less about the beautiful colors and more about what the artwork _does_ in a social and economic context. Curator: Precisely. How these cheap materials, production and their images of labour, sport, leisure, desire intersected. Now, would understanding the intended audience or mode of distribution influence that interpretation? Editor: Absolutely! I will consider these points. I used to believe more in the aesthetic aspects, now I will look also in their production. Curator: Seeing it as both art *and* merchandise really unlocks layers of understanding. The cheapness reveals how it spoke to ordinary people engaging in consumer culture. Editor: Thank you, seeing this work from production context helps unveil its nature.