Card 27, from the Girl Cyclists series (N49) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes 1887

Editor: This is "Card 27, from the Girl Cyclists series" by Allen & Ginter, dating back to 1887. It seems to be a colored pencil drawing reproduced as a print, and I find the image of this woman on a penny-farthing strangely captivating. What do you see in this piece, especially considering its time? Curator: The image carries potent symbols of liberation and shifting gender roles. Cycling offered women unprecedented freedom of movement and dress. The bicycle itself became a visual shorthand for the "New Woman," challenging Victorian ideals of domesticity. Do you see how her gaze is directed outward, towards the open landscape? Editor: I do! There's a sense of adventure. But it's also an advertisement. Does that change the symbolism at all? Curator: Intriguing question. Commercial images often co-opt and disseminate symbols, sometimes diluting or distorting their original intent, while paradoxically cementing them in the cultural memory. The advertisement uses the cyclist as an aspirational figure. She represents modernity, and by extension, so does the product. Is it really different now? Editor: So, it's like the cigarette company is associating itself with progress and female empowerment. Wow, I never thought a cigarette card could be so loaded. Curator: Precisely! These images, initially created for fleeting commercial purposes, unintentionally archived aspirations, anxieties, and the dynamic transformation of an era. Editor: That’s fascinating. Looking at it now, I see layers I completely missed before. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure! It's always rewarding to see how these historical artifacts continue speaking to us, inviting us to reflect on our own present.