Lillian Grubb, from the Actresses series (N203) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 5/8 × 1 3/8 in. (6.6 × 3.5 cm)
Classification
Photographs|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
63.350.216.203.92
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of late 19th-century advertising with *Lillian Grubb, the Actresses series (203)*, a petite commercial color lithograph produced William S. Kimball & in 1889. This tiny card, measuring just 2 5/8 × 1 3/8 inches, captures the poised portrait of actress Lillian Grubb one of many celebrated performers featured in Kimball's popular tobacco insert series. These cards were tucked into cigarette packs as collectibles, blending commerce with the allure of theater stardom during America's Gilded Age. Chromolithography, the medium here, revolutionized mass printing with its ...
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...