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Magnificent matte-finish 7.25 x 9 head-and-shoulders portrait of Kennedy in a suit and tie by Fabian Bachrach, affixed to its original 10.25 x 13.25 studio mount, which is signed and inscribed in the lower border in bold black ink, “For Fabian Bachrach, with warm regards, John F. Kennedy.” In very fine condition, with faint toning from prior display.
Fabian Bachrach was an American photographer (1917–2010) known for portraits of celebrities, politicians, presidents, and other prominent individuals, but it was this portrait of Kennedy that made him internationally known. Bachrach first photographed Senator John F. Kennedy in 1959, during a sitting that didn’t go as planned. ‘I worked like hell for an hour, but I didn’t get anything,’ Bachrach later recounted. ‘He had a bad back, you know. I realized afterward it must have hurt him when he stood, and it showed in his face.’ However, a second shoot was conducted a few months later, and the resulting image was ultimately chosen by Kennedy as his official presidential portrait in 1960.
A spectacular association piece between subject and artist, inscribed by Kennedy to the photographer who helped define his public image as he prepared to enter America’s greatest political arena, portraying him as a youthful figure of quiet resolve, readiness, and generational change.
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