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A Changing World:
New England in the Photographs of Verner Reed, 1950-1972
August 21, 2004-January 2, 2005
The National Heritage Museum, in partnership with Historic New England, presented a retrospective of the work of American photographer and photojournalist Verner Reed. The exhibition was on display at the National Heritage Museum from August 21, 2004 through January 2, 2005.
Verner Reed first began taking photographs in the late 1940s. It was an electric time in New England as people embraced the new even as they maintained their traditional customs. Reed's photographs capture New Englanders in all aspects of their lives. A young farmer looks gently at his boys, who were now less likely than before to follow in their father's footsteps. A woman sells homemade butternut fudge at a town fair--a treat from a time before factory-made candy bars. A group of older Bostonians commemorates their decades-old custom with a last lunch at the Brunswick Hotel, entranced by the music of a classical trio and ignoring the demolition surrounding them as the hotel is being torn down for urban renewal. These are the inhabitants of Reed's New England.
Reed covered New England for Life from 1953 to 1958. His photographs were also featured in other national magazines like Fortune and Time, as well as regional publications including Vermont Life and Rhode Islander Magazine. A variety of themes emerge in Reed's photography, including the contrast between rural and urban life, the person-to-person directness of American politics, the evolving notion of "the famous," and the continuing construction of "old New England" as an ideal.
In the early 1970s, Reed moved away from photography. To a large extent, his striking and evocative images, once enjoyed by a national audience, have not been viewed for a quarter century. This exhibition gave museum visitors a chance to discover a keen observer of New England during an important and exciting time.
Historic New England is the new public identity for the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities, the oldest, largest, and most comprehensive regional preservation organization in the country. Historic New England offers a unique opportunity to experience the lives and stories of New Englanders through their homes and possessions.
Learn more at www.HistoricNewEngland.org.
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