Embracing the Parallax: Berenice Abbott and Elizabeth McCausland
February 2, 2025 - March 30, 2025
Embracing the Parallax: Berenice Abbott and Elizabeth McCausland showcases twenty-two gelatin silver prints from the collection that span key points in the photographer Berenice Abbott’s career, and pairs them with the writing of her lifelong romantic partner, art-critic Elizabeth McCausland. Centering photographs and text from the 1939 book Changing New York, this exhibition unpacks Abbott and McCausland’s prolific partnership and explores how it contributed to key moments in the crystallization of modernity. A part of the Heckscher’s 2025 Pride initiative, this exhibition raises questions about the politics of visibility and invisibility by examining Abbott and McCausland’s intellectual partnership and romantic relationship. Abbott and McCausland’s collaborative projects demonstrate how documentary photography can be used as a tool to foster civic responsibility by exposing the invisible social, economic, and political factors that shape our world.
This exhibition was curated by Jessica Rosen, Curatorial Assistant.
Susan Van Scoy, Ph.D., Brian Katz, & Olshan Frome Wolosky LLP
This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
The Heckscher Museum of Art is grateful to The Town of Huntington and the Town of Huntington Board of Trustees and Suffolk County Department of Economic Development & Planning for their generous support of the arts. ASL, Braille, and Spanish language translation made possible by a generous grant from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
BERENICE ABBOTT: A VIEW OF THE 20TH CENTURY
View a film, “Berenice Abbott: A View of the 20th Century” by Kay Weaver and Martha Wheelock. Critics place Berenice Abbott at the head of her class; she was one of the greatest American photographers of the 20th Century. Filmed during her 91st and 92nd years, the open-hearted Abbott takes us on a guided tour of her century.
Courtesy of Wild West Women https://wildwestwomen.org/
Berenice Abbott: Changing New York
Accompanying the Embracing the Parallax: Berenice Abbott and Elizabeth McCausland exhibition is the highly acclaimed, definitive collection of Abbott’s popular New York photographs.
$40 for Heckscher Museum Members
$50 for Non-Members
Limited signed copies by author Bonnie Yochelson available.
Available for purchase in person at the Museum Visitor Services desk
CURATOR'S LOUNGE: Abbott and McCausland Virtual Conversation with Terri Weissman
The Curator’s Virtual Lounge Series invites you to join convivial conversations and educational talks with leading art experts. Join us for an exciting conversation between Curatorial Assistant Jessica Rosen and Scholar Terri Weissman to uncover hidden stories about photographer Berenice Abbott and her lifelong romantic and intellectual partner, art-critic Elizabeth McCausland. Abbott’s emphasis on realism and objectivity has led to a misinterpretation of her work, and McCausland’s role as a prominent art-critic of the twentieth century has been largely forgotten. Further, the duo’s professional collaboration and romantic relationship has been overlooked by the art world. This conversation will explore Abbott and McCausland’s important partnership, and will break down their shared photographic philosophy.
