Card Number 190, May Field, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-7) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Duke Cigarettes 1880s

Editor: Here we have a card, almost like a snapshot, of May Field. It's an albumen print from the 1880s, part of the "Actors and Actresses" series by Duke Sons & Co. I find it interesting, this almost performative image designed as an advertisement. How would you interpret this work? Curator: This image operates within a complex framework of commodification and representation. May Field, a performer, becomes a product herself, used to sell Duke Cigarettes. Consider the gaze – is it empowering, or is she a passive object of consumption? We also have to address issues of gender and performance. The "Actors and Actresses" series participates in a larger social and cultural practice of representing female performers that sexualizes the female body to meet consumer desire, thus solidifying the foundations of capitalism and reinforcing social stereotypes. Is it subversive? Or does it reify patriarchal norms? Editor: I hadn't thought about it in terms of the gaze. So, her stance, her costume, aren't just about the theater, but also about selling a product? Curator: Exactly! The theatrical backdrop, her clothing, even the name "May Field," contribute to constructing an alluring image. The company is marketing an idealized version of femininity that coincides with the emergence of consumer culture. How might our understanding shift if we knew more about May Field's personal agency in all of this? We should interrogate the narrative imposed upon her and explore possibilities for subversion within the context of the Gilded Age. Editor: It's fascinating how much is packed into such a small image. I see the performance of gender playing out, but now within the context of capitalism. Curator: Indeed. Examining this work from an intersectional perspective allows us to unpack the interwoven threads of gender, commerce, and representation within a specific historical moment. What appeared to be a harmless picture reveals societal assumptions. Editor: Thank you! It has changed the way I approach this card; it feels richer and layered.