M'lle Seashesmy, from the Actresses series (N245) issued by Kinney Brothers to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes 1890

Curator: This delicate portrait print titled "M'lle Seashesmy," dating back to 1890, originates from the Actresses series by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company, crafted to promote their Sweet Caporal Cigarettes. It is now part of the collection here at the Metropolitan Museum. Editor: My immediate impression is one of poised gentility, a wistful contemplation mirrored in the soft gradations of sepia tones and her averted gaze. It possesses the intimate scale of a carte-de-visite. Curator: Indeed. It is fascinating to view it as both an art object and as a cultural artifact steeped in commerce and celebrity culture. These images, disseminated through tobacco products, effectively commodified the image of the actress and beauty ideal for the male consumer. Editor: I am struck by the interplay of light and shadow, and how that contrast models the soft volumes of her face and emphasizes the textures, from the lace of her bonnet to the gentle drape of fabric across her torso. The photographic image itself takes on an almost painterly quality. Curator: Precisely. It highlights how the burgeoning advertising industry intertwined the performative aspects of the stage with the visual rhetoric of consumerism. This young actress, likely not of immense renown at the time, finds herself strategically positioned within a broader theater of commercial spectacle. Editor: It presents us a seemingly effortless image, and invites contemplation about the artist’s intent through compositional choices alone. Observe how the framing guides our eye to her face, her slightly averted gaze—the artist seeks a specific emotional connection with the viewer. Curator: Right. Through its creation and distribution it became a commodity circulated within patriarchal systems. These images upheld gendered roles, perpetuating existing power structures while simultaneously contributing to a visual language of aspiration and desire. Editor: Ultimately, regardless of its social contexts, the charm in its design and structure endures—the use of tone, line and composition renders her likeness remarkably engaging. Curator: And perhaps the beauty of art is that it permits myriad perspectives; it offers lenses through which to examine social currents.