Huia, from the Song Birds of the World series (N23) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes 1890

Curator: This striking image is a "Huia, from the Song Birds of the World series (N23) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes," dating back to 1890. It's currently housed here at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. What catches your eye about it? Editor: The delicate application of colored pencil creates a jewel-toned effect on the bird. It feels a bit melancholic, perhaps because of its association with ephemerality. And there’s that impossibly long, curved beak, presented alongside those frail-looking blossoms… Curator: Precisely. It speaks volumes about the Japonisme craze of the late 19th century. Allen & Ginter, primarily a tobacco company, circulated these cards as collectibles. This series showcasing songbirds from around the globe demonstrates an interesting intersection between commerce, scientific interest, and artistic influence. Editor: It makes you think about commodity culture and colonial attitudes, doesn't it? A packaged, almost flattened, version of nature to be collected, consumed, and then, discarded. Was the huia’s image used to drive interest in the product? Curator: Undoubtedly. And while ostensibly about appreciating the world’s beauty, the very act of collecting such cards can be viewed through a lens of resource exploitation, given that cigarette production often relied on exploited labor and unsustainable agricultural practices. The Huia, unfortunately, is now extinct, likely due to overhunting and habitat destruction after European colonization. Editor: So, the card functions as both a cultural artifact and a haunting premonition of ecological devastation. We see this beautifully rendered image, the now lost Huia captured on the flimsy card that links smoking, collecting, and biodiversity. How unsettling that this was made to move merchandise. Curator: Yes, the layered complexities force us to reconsider how we engage with images that represent "nature" today, what ideologies are reinforced by seeing things a certain way. Editor: A poignant, and necessary, reminder of how consumer culture is connected with power structures and species extinction. Thanks for shedding light on the bigger picture here. Curator: My pleasure, it's a fascinating object for so many reasons. I will not forget that.