Mattie Willoughby, from the Actors and Actresses series (N45, Type 1) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes 1885 - 1891

This is a trade card made by Allen and Ginter around the 1880s, featuring actress Mattie Willoughby, part of a series promoting Virginia Brights Cigarettes. Printed on thin card stock, these cards were essentially miniature advertisements, but also collector's items. The photographic image, likely printed using albumen or collodion, was a relatively new technology at the time, lending a sense of modernity to the product. The mass production of these cards speaks volumes about the rise of consumer culture during the Gilded Age. Cigarettes, like these cards, were becoming widely available, feeding into a culture of disposable pleasures. While the image itself presents a glamorous figure, the card's existence is deeply rooted in labor and mass production. These cards were churned out in vast quantities, relying on factory workers and a growing advertising industry. The very act of collecting these cards encouraged brand loyalty and further consumption. So, consider this card not just as a portrait, but as a material artifact of a rapidly changing society, where art, commerce, and industry were becoming ever more intertwined.