Carrie Behr, Corsair Co., from the Actors and Actresses series (N45, Type 6) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes 1885 - 1891

Curator: Oh, this piece! It's one of a series of actor and actresses trading cards, dating from around 1885 to 1891. These cards were included in packs of Virginia Brights Cigarettes and this one features Carrie Behr from Corsair Co., it's a gelatin-silver print. Editor: It's a… lot. The sepia tone gives it this old-timey feel, obviously, but it's the theatrical costume against that blank studio background that gets me. Is she supposed to be... belly dancing pirate queen? Curator: Precisely. Consider the cultural context! These cards were incredibly popular, miniature portraits celebrating celebrity, even fleeting celebrity, distributed in everyday commodity. Carrie Behr would have been a well-known stage name. Editor: So, what kind of symbolism is working for me here? Besides, I don’t know, empowerment through exoticism. The overt theatricality also suggests artifice, or performance... of the female body, perhaps. Curator: Exactly! Look at how Carrie’s theatrical costume plays into Orientalist fantasies of the time – both captivating and controlled. And the coin belt isn't just decoration. For a woman performer, we could see that also as representative of prosperity or worldly success on her own terms. Editor: Worldly success that the card's branding then ties directly into buying cigarettes. Curator: You’ve noticed that as well, naturally, these cards served a commercial purpose: building brand loyalty. The beauty of a famous actress helped entice. Editor: It's a powerful confluence. Tobacco, a globalizing commodity; the stage actress, representing expanding possibilities for women in the public sphere; and this fascinating conflation of sexualization, celebrity, and commerce. But in a patriarchal frame of distribution, it could be taken as just objectifying as well as idolizing her. Curator: Very good points. And so the symbol gains complexity with cultural memory—and in today’s terms. It is important to consider this context. Editor: Exactly. Something so seemingly simple… ends up being such a multi-layered symbol when you begin unpacking it all. Thanks, it definitely helped add depth and appreciation for it. Curator: And thank you—your perspective is a great tool, truly.