Daisy Murdock, from the Actresses series (N203) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co. 1889

Curator: Oh, she seems lovely. A delicate and quiet strength radiates from this portrait. Editor: And diminutive. It's a trading card, of course, from a series published by Wm. S. Kimball & Co. in 1889. "Daisy Murdock, from the Actresses series (N203)." Curator: Trading cards... How far we’ve fallen! Now it’s pop stars. Imagine collecting actress trading cards! Editor: Well, it's more than just collecting images of pretty actresses, right? Think about the cigarette production. The card serves a structural purpose, keeping the cigarettes from being crushed in the packet, but more importantly, it’s advertising—and cheap. Curator: Yes, but I still think that such a delicate, painterly representation of Daisy has more layers to it. It is almost ethereal in the way the light touches her cheek. It hints at a fragile, ephemeral beauty… perhaps like smoke? Editor: Possibly, although those photographic chemicals are not famous for being ecologically sensible either, are they? Plus the mass printing itself. Think of the paper mills. Curator: Well, that does ground my head in harsh reality. I see a young woman on the cusp of fame or, perhaps, swallowed up by the theater, just as the earth itself may swallow us all. It makes one philosophical, this dainty little image. What dreams did she have? Editor: Did she even consent to be on this card, or did the studio have those rights? What was the financial agreement? What rights did these women have, appearing on this proto-capitalist paraphernalia? Curator: Right, let’s not become too lost in my musings about fading beauty when questions about female empowerment are also written in the history of this photograph. A tiny treasure from another age, revealing as much about them as ourselves, no matter our outlooks. Editor: Absolutely, the act of collecting itself speaks volumes—consumption and aspiration neatly packaged together. Makes one think, doesn't it?