Serving tray, from the Novelties series (N228, Type 4) issued by Kinney Bros. 1889

Curator: Let's discuss this serving tray, issued as part of the Novelties series (N228, Type 4) by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company in 1889. The piece employs drawing and printmaking techniques, featuring a captivating oval portrait. What strikes you about it initially? Editor: The overall impression is, undeniably, that of romanticism. A pensive female gaze, floral adornments—it feels opulent, a little escapist perhaps. The peacock feather in her hand is just…dripping with suggestion. Curator: Absolutely, there’s a strong Art Nouveau aesthetic at play here. Observe the curve of her neck mirroring the frame's contour, the interplay of lines defining her features, the repetition and balance achieved through her headdress, which leads to an underlying sense of classical beauty. The dot-matrix style and delicate precision in the print technique is wonderful too, for that time. Editor: It makes me think about the performance of femininity at the time, and the commodification of images of women for advertising purposes. This isn’t just a pretty picture. The woman is strategically adorned in exotic garb, not just to be attractive but to align smoking with pleasure, privilege, even empire! How might the exoticizing visual elements support broader socio-political hierarchies? Curator: It certainly begs the question. The decorative-art elements cannot be overlooked—they enhance the visual appeal and contribute to a unified aesthetic, a sense of artifice. Note the subtle gradations in color, providing the piece with some dynamism, even when subdued. I think these aspects lift it from being merely an object of utility, raising its symbolic value. Editor: Perhaps it encourages the illusion of accessibility—art that, through this specific image and its function, penetrates social spheres beyond traditional exhibition spaces. How complicit were the women depicted on tobacco and cigarette cards in the creation of this image or that ideal of female allure? What was being communicated? Who was left out of that narrative? Curator: A very good question and difficult one to answer without further digging into source information. What remains is a lovely portrait. What new conclusions have you personally reached when re-examining its place in society through such contextualized narratives? Editor: To see this piece not just as something pleasing but a reflection, however incomplete, of an epoch fraught with complexity – that enriches my appreciation.