With the ever present popularity of TMZ and other media outlets dominated by paparazzi-fed images, the candidness of portrait seems to be on the decline.
However, through “Capturing Camelot,” the retrospective series of photos of the Kennedy family by Stanley Tretick in the Schumacher Gallery until March 25, we are not only given a window into the lives of one of the most beloved political families in America, but also an alternative to how the concept of celebrity is handled.
Instead of exposing the personal side of its subjects, as most tabloid magazines do, the photos in the exhibit simply explore the inner workings of a family that has become the pinnacle of American ideology: the triumph and the downfall. We are given images of John F. Kennedy at his happiest among his wife and children, and at his most concerned as President. We are given images of a family constantly together, during work and play, and yet are also constantly aware of the family’s future.
The exhibit has, as well, magazine covers which used Tretick’s photos next to the originals, providing a juxtaposition between the normality that still existed in the Kennedy’s lives and how it was spun into celebrity fanfare.
And yet, despite these photos letting us into the privacy of others, and furthermore allowing us to see them turned into headlines, nothing about the series feels voyeuristic or intrusive. Every image of what was America’s most beloved family displays not only compliance for the camera, but also quiet dignity and joy.
