Life — January 16, 1913 — page 11: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page from *Life* magazine (page 155) demonstrates a printing technique rather than presenting satirical content. The main illustration shows a man and woman in elaborate period costume—the woman holds a fan and wears an ornate dress, while the man wears military regalia and a cape, suggesting a historical or operatic scene, credited to " Ora Cushing." The instructional text below explains how to create the effect of "calvé in Carmen" changing from public to private performance: by cutting out pure white areas and adjusting dark portions around patterns at the page's bottom, readers could manipulate the image's appearance. This appears to be a technical demonstration of photographic or printing manipulation for *Life*'s audience rather than political satire.