Jackie Kennedy in India and Italy: Rare, candid photographs on display in downtown LA

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Let the Kennedy retrospectives begin. This November marks 50 years since the assassination of JFK and there are sure to be countless memorials honoring the slain president.

One tangential but fascinating glimpse into the late first lady is on display at drkrm gallery in Chinatown, featuring rarely-seen photographs of Jackie in Italy and India in the sixties, courtesy the photographer Benno Graziani.

The 83-year-old artist has spent his career photographing celebrities. He met Jackie when she was a Bouvier not a Kennedy, a young photographer-reporter herself. She gave him access to her stylish life. It was a very different relationship than the one she would later have with another photographer, Ron Galella.  Mrs. Kennedy famously sued him for his invasive tactics.

On display through September 28th at drkrm on Chung King Road; closing ceremony Saturday September 14th

(If you’ve been to the Chinatown gallery scene, or to drkrm in particular, you know the spaces are small–but powerful. That’s the subject of our art critic Hunter Drohojowska-Philp’s Art Talk this week: footprint doesn’t necessarily correlate with quality.)

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Benno Graziani, Jackie Kennedy, Ravello, Italy 1962. (Courtesy dkrm.) (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)
Benno Graziani, Jackie Kennedy and sister Lee Radziwill, Ravello, Italy 1962.(Courtesy dkrm)
Benno Graziani, Jackie Kennedy and sister Lee Radziwill, Ravello, Italy 1962.(Courtesy dkrm) (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)
Benno Graziani, Jackie Kennedy, India, 1962. (Courtesy dkrm)
Benno Graziani, Jackie Kennedy, India, 1962. (Courtesy dkrm) (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)