George Luks painted memorable figures of the immigrant and working-class communities of New York in the early 1900s. One of the most well known was Matches Mary, an older woman who earned her living, and nickname, selling lights to theatergoers between acts. With a reputation for accosting passersby along Broadway, she became a favorite of local newspapers and caricaturists, who often portrayed her as ghoulish and decrepit. With this sympathetic portrait, Luks presents a real person rather than a “picturesque” profile typical of the society pages.