NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – On February 23, The Mariners' Museum and Parks' newest photography exhibition will open to the public. Seizing the Moment: The Evolution of Action Photography will feature never before seen images from The Horace Havemeyer III Collection, along with work by contemporary photographers.

In 2015, The Mariners' Museum received a significant gift in memory of Horace Havemeyer III, a native of New York and avid sailor – a collection of 336 gelatin silver prints by early 20th century master marine photographers Edwin Levick and Morris Rosenfeld, as well as works by David Thrum and others.

Havemeyer's grandfather purchased these photographs from Edwin Levick; and over the years, the photographs were passed down to his son and then grandson, Horace III, who founded Metropolis magazine in 1981. He served as its president until his death in 2014. His wife, Eugenie C. Havemeyer, is now at the helm of this publication, considered the vanguard of architecture and design today.

Levick and Rosenfeld pushed the limits of the photographic medium, capturing exciting, point-of-view images. Their photographic output overlaps about nine years. Levick's work often placed the viewer squarely on deck, seemingly as part of the action. Rosenfeld worked for Levick before he opened his own studio in 1910.

Seizing the Moment will explore these beautiful photographs and one-of-a-kind collection. Guests can experience the evolution of marine photography from a documentary approach to more of an artistic perspective. For more information about this exhibit, please visit MarinersMuseum.org.