Lyndon Johnson, Cape Kennedy, Florida Possibly 1969 - 1983

This gelatin silver print was made by Garry Winogrand, capturing President Lyndon Johnson at Cape Kennedy, Florida. Photography, like the Space Race itself, was undergoing rapid technological change. This image captures a fleeting moment in time, using highly technical and ever-evolving processes of manufacturing film, cameras, and darkroom equipment, to bring the spheres of politics and technology into contact. Winogrand’s choice of black and white film influences the appearance of this image, lending a timeless quality, while also echoing the aesthetics of documentary photography and photojournalism. The contrast between light and shadow emphasizes the textures of the clothing, the concrete, and the metallic skin of the aircraft. The labor involved in producing this image extends beyond Winogrand as the photographer, to the manufacturing of the materials, chemicals, and equipment required to create the photograph. These materials, made by anonymous workers, enabled Winogrand to frame this encounter between political power, technological advancement, and the everyday lives of ordinary people, and ask what it means to witness history in the making.