Card Number 766, Lizzie Webster, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-5) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cameo Cigarettes 1880s

This card, advertising Duke’s Cameo Cigarettes, was made in the late 19th century by W. Duke, Sons & Co. It is a photograph of the actress Lizzie Webster, reproduced on a small scale for mass distribution. Photography, while it seems automatic, involved a complex and highly skilled process. The original photograph would have been captured using large-format cameras and glass plate negatives, then printed using chemical processes. These techniques, though seemingly far removed from craft traditions, nonetheless required expertise and care. But the real kicker is how it was then multiplied. Lithography allowed for mass production, embedding this image within a burgeoning culture of consumerism. The card is a fascinating example of how photography became deeply entwined with industrial production and advertising. What's the connection? Tobacco and stage performance were both realms of working-class aspiration, and celebrity culture. It reminds us that even seemingly mass-produced items bear traces of skillful production and social context. We should expand our definition of art to include all such objects.