Early Life and Artistic Foundations Berenice Abbott, born Berenice Alice Abbott on July 17, 1898, in Springfield, Ohio, possessed a spirit that seemed destined for artistic exploration from the outset. Her early years were marked by a quiet intensity, shaped by her parents’ divorce and a childhood spent navigating the complexities of family life. Despite this backdrop, Berenice developed a keen eye for detail and an appreciation for beauty—qualities that would later become central to her photographic vision. She initially pursued studies at The Ohio State University in 1918, but found hersel…