French Can-Can Dancer, from the Dancing Women series (N186) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 11/16 × 1 7/16 in. (6.9 × 3.7 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ephemera
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, Gift of Jefferson R. Burdick
Accession Number
63.350.216.186.45
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the lively world of 1880s popular culture with *French Can-Can Dancer* from the *Dancing Women* series (186), a vibrant commercial color lithograph by Wm. S. Kimball & Co., Rochester, New York-based tobacco company. Measuring just 2 11/16 × 1 7/16 inches, this petite print was designed as an insert for cigarette packs, part of a collectible series that captivated smokers and hobbyists alike. Produced in 1889, it captures the high-energy spirit of the Can-Can, the scandalously exuberant French dance that thrilled audiences in Parisian music halls like the Moulin Rouge. Chromolithogra...
About the Artist
William S. Kimball & Company
**William S. Kimball & Company**, a pioneering American tobacco manufacturer, was established in 1846 in Rochester, New York, by William S. Kimball and James C. Hart. The firm quickly grew into one of the city's largest employers, particularly of women, producing popular brands like Peerless chewing tobacco, Rigatta and Fireside smoking tobacco, and Vanity Fair cigarettes. Under Kimball's leadersh...