Presenting selections from The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation Photography Collection at MOCA, The Social Scene examined post-war social documentary photography made between the 1930s and 1980s through comprehensive bodies of work by Diane Arbus, Brassaï, Robert Frank, Lee Friedlander, Helen Levitt, Danny Lyon, Roger Mertin, John Pfahl, and Garry Winogrand. The over three hundred works were organized thematically into 6 categories: “American Icons: Ideas and Issues”; “Natural Occurrences”; “Loss of Innocence”; “Picture-Making”; “Character Studies”; and “Social Space.” The first included images of postwar America, including scenes of the open road, the civil rights movement, the women’s liberation movement, and Hollywood. “Natural Occurrences” presented landscape photography; “Loss of Innocence” examined social politics; and “Picture-Making” featured reflections on the medium of photography. “Character Studies” considered the construction of social identity through images, while “Social Space” assessed the role of space in molding social relations.
The exhibition traveled to the Palm Beach Institute of Contemporary Art.The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue.
The Social Scene is organized by Connie Butler, The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.