NEW PALTZ, NY.- The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art at SUNY New Paltz announces “In Celebration: A Recent Gift from the Photography Collection of Marcuse Pfeifer,” an exhibition featuring 52 images by important 19th and 20th century photographers.

This exhibition spans the history of the medium, showcasing works by key artists including Berenice Abbott (1898-1991), John Ernest Joseph Bellocq (1873-1949), Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908-2001), Timothy Greenfield-Sanders (1952- ), Peter Hujar (1934-1987), George Platt Lynes (1907-1955), Weegee [Arthur Fellig] (1899-1968), and many more. Curated by Wayne Lempka, art collections manager and photo historian at the Dorsky Museum, the exhibition is on display from February 9 – July 14 in the museum’s Sara Bedrick Gallery.

“In Celebration” consists entirely of photographs selected from Marcuse Pfeifer’s gifts to the Dorsky Museum’s Photography Collection, a tribute to her generosity as one of the major supporters of The Dorsky’s permanent collection. It also features a video recording of an interview between Pfeifer and Lempka, and a comprehensive exhibition catalogue.

Marcuse Pfeifer was an instrumental figure in the promotion of photography as an art form as she was one of the first gallery dealers in New York City to exclusive show photographs. She was also a founding member and president of the Association of International Photography Art Dealers

Beginning in 1976, Pfeifer’s gallery (located first on Madison Avenue, and later in Soho) gained a reputation as one of the few spaces where one could view and purchase images by both well-known and up-and-coming artists. She helped launch the careers of numerous contemporary photographers, including Sally Mann, Peter Hujar and Timothy Greenfield-Sanders.

Keenly aware during her career of the art world’s tendency to overlook important women photographers, Pfeifer also played an important role helping restore to prominence artists including Carlotta Corpron, Nell Dorr and Lois Cramer.