Tuesday, February 25, 2025
5:30 – 6:30 pm
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.
Terri Weissman teaches modern and contemporary art history, the history of photography, and the history of design at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign where she is also the Associate Director of the School of Art and Design. She is the author of the award-winning The Realisms of Berenice Abbott: Documentary Photography and Political Action, co-author (with Sharon Corwin and Jessica May) of American Modern: Documentary Photographs by Abbott, Evans, and Bourke-White, and co-author (with Erina Duganne and Heather Diack) of Photography: A Critical History. Her articles and reviews have appeared in a variety of journals edited volumes and such as Arts, NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction, Third Text, Visual Resources, Media-N, and ArtNexus. Her current research project, Bodies of Evidence, focuses on questions of representation and “evidence” in relation to contemporary pictures of state-sanctioned violence against vulnerable populations. She holds a BA from Oberlin College and a PhD from Columbia University.
Jessica Rosen, Curatorial Assistant at The Heckscher Museum, curated the exhibition Embracing the Parallax: Berenice Abbott and Elizabeth McCausland. She is a visual artist and curator, with her practice rooted in feminist and queer theory. After completing her bachelor’s at Colgate University in studio art, she received her Master’s degree at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, in the program Arts and Heritage: Policy, Management, and Education.
Free for Members, $10 Non-Members
Space is limited. Registration required.
A themed mocktail recipe (“Espresso Abbottini”) will be emailed upon registration, allowing participants to enjoy the lounge experience from their own home.
