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May 29, 2017 will be the one hundredth anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s birthday. In honor of the occasion, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History has organized an exhibition of nine Richard Avedon photographs of Kennedy and his family. The exhibition will overlap with the Smithsonian's other show, “American Visionary: John F. Kennedy’s Life and Times”, which traces how the advent of photojournalism helped convey JFK’s professional and personal life to millions of Americans. But it's the latter of those two categories that is the subject of nine exceedingly special Avedon photographs. On January 3, 1961, Avedon photographed Jackie and John F. Kennedy, along with their two children, Caroline and John Jr. It was just weeks after John Jr.’s birth, and a mere 17 days before Kennedy’s inauguration. The photographs, which were the only ones taken in between the 1960 presidential election and Kennedy’s swearing in, depict a family in their most candid moments. Four of the photographs included are actually contact sheets. You see not so much a portrait of a man on the eve of his presidency, but intimate moments between a husband and wife as they pose for their picture to be taken. You see too the portrait of a father and daughter, as a young Caroline Kennedy can be glimpsed holding her father's hand, laughing, twisting—as any toddler might. Needless to say, the exhibition, which will open May 25, is well worth a trip.
Above, all nine Avedon photographs included.