Berenice Abbott was born in Springfield, Ohio on July 17th, 1898. From 1918-1929 she spent her early career studying sculpting in New York, Berlin, and Paris. In Paris, she worked as Man Ray’s studio assistant. She also established her own portrait studio where she photographed artistic and literary figures living in Paris. She acquired Eugene Atget’s prints and negatives after his death in 1927. She returned back to New York in 1929 with the intent to find an American publisher for Atget’s photographs. She was struck by the urbanization that New York was experiencing, and decided to also take up the responsibility of documenting the birth of modern New York. Her photographs of New York focused on the buildings of the city and the people who lived there. She published these photos in her book “Changing New York”

Depeyster Statue, Bowling GreenChurch of God

She later transitioned to scientific photography where she took photos that demonstrated the laws of physics. She believed that it is important to understand our scientific world, and photography is the medium to allow that.

Magnetic FieldA Bouncing Ball in Diminishing Arcs

In 1966 she moved to Maine and took photos of the state with a focus on natural scenery, Antebellum architecture, and small rural communities. These photographs were published in her final book “A portrait of Maine.”

Sources:
https://www.moma.org/interactives/objectphoto/schools/18.html
https://npg.si.edu/object/npg_NPG.92.55?
https://www.icp.org/browse/archive/constituents/berenice-abbott?all/all/all/all/0
https://www.moma.org/artists/41
https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/berenice-abbott-3380.php
https://www.phillipscollection.org/research/american_art/bios/abbott-bio.htm