Support Independent Arts Journalism As an independent publication, we rely on readers like you to fund our journalism and keep our reporting and criticism free and accessible to all. If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, consider becoming a member today. How do you picture the president? We might think that many of our olde tyme presidents hearkened from an age that predated photography, but in truth, 39 of 45 of the United States’s top leaders have been captured in a photographic medium .
The earliest likeness to survive is an 1843 daguerreotype of our sixth leader, John Quincy Adams, who served from 1825 until 1829. That depiction is one of several displayed in Picturing the Presidents: Daguerreotypes and Ambrotypes from the National Portrait Gallery’s Collection , on view at the Washington, DC museum through June 8 of next year. Just in time for the forthcoming election between a convicted felon and a deeply confused old man in the latest installment of our nation’s currently flailing experiment in democracy.
Sign up for our free newsletters to get the latest art news, reviews, and opinions from Hyperallergic. Daily The latest stories every weekday morning Weekly Editors' picks of the best stories each week Opportunities Monthly list of opportunities for artists, and art workers View our full list of free newsletters . Daguerreotypes were the original means by which images of the President could be disseminated to the electorate.
Through a costly .
