Piano and Organ, from the Musical Instruments series (N121) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Honest Long Cut Tobacco 1888

Curator: This is a print called "Piano and Organ, from the Musical Instruments series," made in 1888 by W. Duke, Sons & Co. Editor: It feels incredibly ornate for something designed to sell tobacco. The pastel colours and swirling embellishments are charming but also feel very… calculated. Curator: Exactly. Duke Sons & Co. issued these as trade cards to promote their "Honest Long Cut Tobacco". They were essentially promotional items, acting as collectible inserts in tobacco packaging. Editor: So, what looks like high art is really deeply embedded in industrial production and consumption patterns of the late 19th century. I’m curious about the production of the cards themselves. Were they mass-produced? What materials were used? And who were the laborers behind them? Curator: Undoubtedly mass-produced, aimed at broad distribution. These types of cards played a key role in advertising at a time when mass media was still developing. Tobacco companies were really pioneering marketing strategies. Editor: Looking at it now with this information, I see that these are less an expression of artistic sentiment and more as artifacts of capitalism, reflecting the societal aspirations of the growing middle class through accessible images of leisure and refinement. And of course, leisure predicated upon, a labor of those often hidden. Curator: Yes, and the subject matter is telling – music was increasingly accessible in the home thanks to mass-produced instruments. Depicting women as the players reinforced societal expectations but also subtly acknowledged their expanding role. The art here presents ideals as much as they push a product. Editor: The presentation also is calculated and designed to show women who were elegant. The clothing, the roses in their hair; the organ looks especially fancy. If they used Honest Long Cut Tobacco perhaps their lives could look like the women pictured. Curator: And you have that little stringed instrument tucked away at the lower right... such an intimate look into a staged display of instruments. This object really reveals much about late 19th-century societal values through consumer culture. Editor: It certainly reframes our understanding of what constitutes art when seen as a cog in the engine of industrial marketing and consumption.