Pete Souza: Two Presidents, One Photographer

Pete Souza: Two Presidents, One Photographer showcases 56 photographs from ex-Chief Official White House Photographer Pete Souza. The exhibit will include Souza's favorite images of Presidents Barack Obama and Ronald Reagan. Souza’s iconic photographs are well known from his tenure as Chief Official White House Photographer for Obama. What most people don’t remember is that Souza, who was trained as a photojournalist, was also an Official White House Photographer for Reagan. Souza was in his late 20s at the beginning of his career when he joined the Reagan White House in 1983. More than 30 years later, Souza returned to the White House to join the Obama administration.

Souza is a freelance photographer in the Washington, D.C. area and Professor Emeritus of Visual Communication at Ohio University. Along with being Chief Official White House Photographer for Reagan, Souza served in the same role and was also Director of the White House Photo Office under Obama. His book, "Obama: An Intimate Portrait," was published by Little, Brown & Company on Nov. 7, 2017, and debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list.

Designing a Presidency, a lecture focusing on the trends in visual information and how these intentional design decisions in presidential elections can drive our vote, will be held as the opening reception to this exhibit on Thursday, July 15. More information can be found here.

A collection of photographs featured in this exhibit can be found here.

Louisiana’s Old State Capitol hosted Professor Lisa Reynolds for the opening lecture of this exhibit. The lecture, entitled Designing a Presidency, focused on the trends in visual information and how these intentional design decisions in presidential elections can drive our vote.

Reynolds is an assistant professor of graphic design at Wilkes University and specializes in integrated media. She will focus on the pivotal points of graphic design in presidential elections throughout history and how they influence the way politicians communicate with voters. She also will discuss how intentional design decisions in presidential elections generate support and can change the way we view policy.

A recording of this lecture can be found below.