Ellen Macfarlane

Ellen Macfarlane is a Research Fellow affiliated with Princeton University's Department of Art and Archaeology. She previously served as the 2018–2020 Postdoctoral Scholar at the University of Southern California's Visual Studies Research Institute. Her work focuses on the history of photography and modern art, particularly examining the intersection of visual culture with political, environmental, and social issues in 20th-century America.

Her research explores topics such as the relationship between art and politics, the Anthropocene's impact on artistic expression, and the role of deception in photographic representation. Key projects include her dissertation on the Group f.64 photography collective and analyses of labor activism through photographic narratives in communist publications.

Macfarlane has held prestigious fellowships from the ACLS/Luce Foundation and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Her scholarship bridges academic disciplines, combining art history with cultural studies and critical theory.