“Since the time of Abraham Lincoln through the present day, presidential candidates have used photographic imagery in their campaigns to impact public opinion,” says Claartje van Dijk, Assistant Curator of ICP. “While staged and curated press prints have historically been the tools of choice for candidates to reach and perform for their electorate, the delivery method has shifted from print publications to broadcast to computer and mobile phone screens—and the imagery has become more personal, more immediate and seemingly more off-the-cuff. With Winning the White House we examine that evolution and put it side to side with the screened selection of campaign images.”
“While professional press photographers continue to cover every campaign stop for major media outlets like their predecessors, they are now joined by thousands of amateur photographers,” adds Susan Carlson, Assistant Curator of ICP and van Dijk’s co-curator for Winning the White House. “With the rise of smart-phone technology and the rapid rate at which images are released on social media, the 2016 campaigns are seeing an even greater demand for visual content. This provides us with a timely opportunity to explore photography’s significant role in elections.”

Cornell Capa, John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jackie, campaigning in New York, October 19, 1960. © International Center of Photography/Magnum Photos

Cornell Capa, John F. Kennedy autographing a scrapbook, near Fresno, California. September 9, 1960. © International Center of Photography/Magnum Photos.

Cecil Stoughton, President Lyndon B. Johnson campaigning, waving to the crowd, October 1964. Courtesy LBJ Library.

Bill Eppridge, Senator Robert F. Kennedy riding with the press on the back of a convertible, Oregon, April or May 1968. © Bill Eppridge / loaned by Adrienne Aurichio/The Estate of Bill Eppridge.

Bill Eppridge, Senator Robert F. Kennedy riding with the press on the back of a convertible, Oregon, April or May 1968. © Bill Eppridge / loaned by Adrienne Aurichio/The Estate of Bill Eppridge.

Thomas J. O’Halloran, Jimmy Carter disembarking from the airplane “Peanut One” at the Pittsburgh- Allegheny County Airport for a campaign stop in Pennsylvania, 1976. Courtesy Library of Congress.

Marion S. Trikosko, President Gerald Ford, covered with confetti, smiles at crowd after his arrival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for the 1st presidential debate with Jimmy Carter, 1976. Courtesy Library of Congress.

David Hume Kennerly, President Ford and Jimmy Carter meet at the Walnut Street Theater in Philadelphia to debate domestic policy during the first of the three Ford-Carter Debates, September 23, 1976. Courtesy Gerald R. Ford Library.

Marion S. Trikosko, Reporters in press room observe President Gerald Ford on television during the 1st presidential debate with Jimmy Carter in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, September 23, 1976. Courtesy Library of Congress.

David Burnett, Larry King, Bill Clinton, and Al Gore preparing for a television interview, 1992. © David Burnett/Contact Press Images.

Elliott Erwitt, Inauguration Ball for President Barack Obama, Washington D. C., January, 2009. © Elliott Erwitt/Magnum Photos.

Stephen Crowley, We Are Here with President Obama, July 21, 2015. © Stephen Crowley/The New York Times.

Mark Peterson, The CPAC convention, National Harbor, MD, February 2015. © Mark Peterson/Redux Pictures.

Mark Peterson, Attendees at the RedState Gathering watch the first 2016 Republican presidential debate, which took place in Cleveland, Ohio, Atlanta, GA, August 6, 2016. © Mark Peterson/Redux Pictures.

Mark Peterson, The press section at Senator Ted Cruz event, Columbia, SC, January 15, 2016. © Mark Peterson/Redux Pictures.

Various photographers, Selfies with presidential candidates, 2015-16, International Center of Photography.
Images courtesy International Center of Photography (ICP).
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