Art in the Parlor: Consumer Culture and Currier and Ives

Abstract

The development of modern American economy took major leap forward in midnineteenth century. The American economy moved dramatically in direction of mass production and expanded product advertising, prompting development of modern consumer culture. Feeding those developments was shift of production from factory, which was accompanied by greater emphasis on as sanctuary and source of moral and spiritual renewal. The domestic sphere became women's domain, and purchased an increasingly large number of items produced outside that would support their particular identities and missions, including popular art. Popular culture was coming into its own, fed by same forces of economic development. This article describes role Currier and Ives played in this aspect of nineteenth-century consumer culture. Changes in Home and Consumer Culture At start of nineteenth century about eighty percent of Americans lived on farms, where were integral parts of family agricultural business, and which were sites of both production and consumption. Families produced most of what they consumed, including not only food, but also long list of other commodities, from soap clothing and from alcohol medicine. By end of century, families-even farm families-produced far fewer of their own consumables, and production had largely shifted from (Husband and O'Loughlin 99). Americans began think of as sanctuary from commercial world, place where women were nurture their harried husbands, educate their children, and compensate for spiritually impoverished world outside of home (Husband and O'Loughlin 99). American families became more wage dependent, and wives, rather than husbands, became leading domestic consumers in United States. A regendering of consumer agency occurred (Witkowski 263; Schlereth 141). As Terrence Witkowski put it, became consumer agents, actively seeking, learning about and wanting things; initiating and influencing household decision-making; and dealing with merchants, bringing things home, and then managing their consumption (262-63). Such changes are seldom uniform. And in United States this transformation of American economy and consumer culture varied in time and place and according social class, race, and ethnicity. But as century wore on, most Americans had more money and free time purchase greater number of mass-produced and comparatively inexpensive goods (Schlereth 141; see also Blumin). As Mary Ryan found, nineteenth-century middle-class households were vitally connected with advances of both marketplace and factories and served as the targeted destination for voluminous flow of consumer goods, all of which was facilitated by appearance of mass advertising (198-200). The result was nothing short of what Simon N. Patten recognized in 1907 as new basis of civilization (Schlereth 142). Much has been written on origin and evolution of women's sphere in nineteenth century, perhaps adequately summarized in 1869 in phrase from women's magazine, The Household, in an article titled, Women's Relations State: Woman is divinely commissioned teacher of her race (qtd. in Husband and O'Loughlin 101). A major component of her commission was creating an appropriately protective and nurturing environment for her family. In this world, men labored outside in sometimes dangerous and morally destructive society that many feared was developing in industrial, commercial America. He did it for family and country, and his reward was home. Domestic environmentalism attempted to bring majority of Americans under sway of bourgeois culture, as some would put it, while others saw it as a project for edification of masses (Grier 5-8; Rotskoff 41). …