Kate Castleton, from the Actors and Actresses series (N171) for Gypsy Queen Cigarettes 1886 - 1890

This small photograph of Kate Castleton was produced by Goodwin & Company as part of the Actors and Actresses series to promote Gypsy Queen Cigarettes. Reflect on what it meant for women to be both celebrated and commodified in the late 19th century. Actresses like Castleton were among the first women to achieve celebrity status. The image presents Castleton in a fashionable yet demure light; in a high-necked jacket and skirt, adorned with gloves and a hat. The cigarette cards offered a form of visual pleasure but also reinforced the idea of women as objects of consumption. The Gypsy Queen Cigarettes’ branding further complicates this image. The appropriation of ‘Gypsy’ imagery exoticized and othered a marginalized group while using their image to market a product. By centering these cards on actresses and marketing using harmful stereotypes, there's a tension between empowerment and exploitation.