From the Actresses series (N57) promoting Our Little Beauties Cigarettes for Allen & Ginter brand tobacco products 1890

This is one of the small cards distributed by Allen & Ginter, a tobacco firm, as an incentive to purchase their cigarettes. These were made using chromolithography, a form of color printing that allowed for mass production. The texture of the card stock, combined with the printmaking technique, gives the image a soft, almost hazy quality. The actress depicted embodies a particular kind of idealized femininity, one directly linked to consumption. This image appeared alongside others in the set, each designed to encourage brand loyalty. The amount of labor involved in producing these cards at scale is significant, with factory workers churning out thousands of images per day. These cards exemplify how art and commerce intertwined, blurring the lines between artistic expression, advertisement, and commodity. To fully appreciate its meaning, we must consider not only its aesthetic qualities, but also its role in the culture of consumption.