Noonan’s Food Store” at Reed and Lenox streets in South End, Irene Shwachman, July 2, 1965. Photo courtesy of the Boston Athenaeum

What: Developing Boston Exhibition
Where: Boston Athenaeum, 10 ½ Beacon St., Boston
Owner: Boston Athenaeum
Built: 1847 

The Boston Athenaeum’s newest exhibit showcases the rapid transformation of the city’s built environment during the 20th century. 

“Developing Boston: Berenice Abbott and Irene Shwachman Photograph a Changing City,” includes images by two pioneering photographers who captured notable properties in the 1930s and 1960s. 

The exhibit contrasts Abbott’s 1934 photos with her former student Shwachman’s images of the same locations from the urban renewal era of 1959 through 1968, including the Old State House, Faneuil Hall, West End, Beacon Hill, demolition of the West End and construction of the Prudential Tower. 

The exhibit also includes recent images of Boston from teenaged photographers from Artists For Humanity Boston. 

They Said It: 

“For anyone who loves exploring the modern history of Boston and the evolution of photographic technique and composition, ‘Developing Boston’ promises to be a rich and inspiring experience.” 

— Leah Rosovsky, Stanford Calderwood director, the Boston Athenaeum