Early 20th century modern photography, like that of György Kepes, captured the eye of collector Leonard Vernon. Describing how uncommon this was with American photography collectors, Charlotte Cotton, former Department Head and Curator of The Wallis Annenberg Photography Department at LACMA wrote:

"The eastern European early 20th century stuff, like the Hungarians, that you might not have heard of, even if you thought you knew something about the history of photography. So in a way, for me, that was the area where it was quite unusual for an American collection to have looked at abstraction, and early experimentation. Because normally, once these emigrates arrived in America, they then start becoming part of the conventions of photo collections, but this was pre-emigration, pre-first World War, second World War."

Explaining modern photography’s particular presence in her parents’ collection, Carol Vernon, daughter of Marjorie and Leonard, wrote:

"There was something about the European modernist work that I think probably appealed to my father–I think my mother got to understand it and enjoy it, but it was my father’s eye. And I don’t know why, but it was a driving force, and the abstract was never an issue for any of us."