Media Advisory Press Preview for “American Visionary: John F. Kennedy’s Life and Times”
WHAT:
Press preview for exhibition “American Visionary: John F. Kennedy’s Life and Times”
WHEN:
Tuesday, May 2
10 a.m. to noon
Sign-in: 10 a.m.
Curator-led tour: 10:30 a.m.
WHERE:
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Enter at Eighth and G streets N.W.
WHO:
Stephanie Stebich, The Margaret and Terry Stent Director
John Jacob, McEvoy Family Curator for Photography
Lawrence Schiller, exhibition organizer and curator, Wiener Schiller Productions
The Smithsonian American Art Museum’s presentation of “American Visionary: John F. Kennedy’s Life and Times” is the première event in the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum’s yearlong, nationwide celebration that commemorates Kennedy’s centennial year. His 100th birthday would have been May 29.
Kennedy’s administration coincided with a golden age of photojournalism in America. “American Visionary” brings together 77 images culled from the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, Getty Images, private collections and the Kennedy family archives that capture the dramatic scope of Kennedy’s life. The exhibition, based on the forthcoming book JFK: A Vision for America (HarperCollins), is one of the most exhaustively researched collections of Kennedy photos ever assembled.
JFK: A Vision for America is co-edited by Stephen Kennedy Smith, Kennedy’s nephew, and Douglas Brinkley, professor of history at Rice University.
Information about the exhibition is available in an online press kit, http://americanart.si.edu/pr/kits/#jfk.
Interested media should RSVP to americanartpressoffice@si.edu. Photographers and film crews must contact the office in advance to make arrangements.
Requests for one-on-one interviews must be made in advance with Laura Baptiste by email at baptistel@si.edu.
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About the Smithsonian American Art Museum and its Renwick Gallery
The Smithsonian American Art Museum is the flagship museum in the United States for American art and craft. It is home to one of the most significant and inclusive collections of American art in the world. The museum’s main building, located at Eighth and G streets N.W., is open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. The museum’s Renwick Gallery, a branch museum dedicated to contemporary craft, is located on Pennsylvania Avenue at 17th Street N.W. and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Check online for current hours and admission information. Admission is free. Follow the museum on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube. Smithsonian information: (202) 633-1000. Museum information (recorded): (202) 633-7970. Website: americanart.si.edu.
