F. du Thibet from playing cards "Jeu d'Or" 18th century

This playing card, 'F. du Thibet' from the Jeu d'Or set, was created by an anonymous artist using printmaking techniques. The printed lines are then hand-colored in watercolor, giving each card a unique touch. Consider the material qualities here: paper, ink, pigment. Cheap and easily reproduced, yet carefully finished by hand. The image, of a woman holding a fluffy dog, exoticizes Tibet, a faraway place. The image's primary purpose was for a capitalist game of chance, albeit one overlaid with imperialist fantasies. The card's aesthetic comes from the tension between the mechanical reproduction of the print and the individual labor of applying color. These cards speak volumes about the links between labor, politics, and consumption in the 18th century. By looking closely at the materials and processes, we can see how these little objects tie into wider social issues.