The Legacy of Bill Eppridge

Bill Eppridge was one of the most accomplished photojournalists of the Twentieth Century and captured some of the most significant moments in American history: he covered wars, political campaigns, heroin addiction, the arrival of the Beatles in the United States, Vietnam, Woodstock, the civil rights movement, (notably the funeral of James Chaney, who was murdered by the Ku Klux Klan), the Olympic Games, America’s Cup races, and revolutions in Latin America, and perhaps the most dramatic moment of his career – the assassination of Senator Robert Kennedy in Los Angeles. Over the last 60 years, his work appeared in numerous publications, including National Geographic, Life, and Sports Illustrated; and has been exhibited in museums throughout the world.
The exhibit presents an overview of his career, including many never-before-seen examples of his early work, and many of his photographs of Bobby Kennedy’s 1968 campaign will be featured.

“A journalist does not necessarily imply ‘artist’ but you are not going to make your point if you cannot make a picture that people will stop and explore…the ‘artist’ in one instant must establish a sense of time, a sense of place, a moment of importance, a moment of aesthetic beauty all in the same frame, one moment in history. In terms of importance, the fewer of these present, the less significant the photograph. Anybody can take pictures, but not anybody can become a photographer.’” – Bill Eppridge

About the Author

Bill Eppridge (1938-2013) holds degrees from the University of Toronto and the University of Missouri. He worked at National Geographic and from there moved to LIFE magazine, where he became a staff photographer.

A portrait of Bill Eppridge, at his home by Christopher T. Assaf

Eppridge covered a wide range of stories for LIFE including the civil rights movement, Vietnam, the arrival of the Beatles to the United States, Woodstock; homosexuals in San Francisco and Los Angeles, and heroin addicts in New York. He is perhaps best known for his work on political campaigns, particularly his photograph of Juan Romero, busboy at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, kneeling to help Robert F. Kennedy after he was shot by Sirhan B. Sirhan during Kennedy’s 1968 Presidential campaign. After LIFE ceased publication in 1972, Eppridge worked for other Time Inc. magazines and eventually landed at Sports Illustrated, where he photographed numerous Winter Olympics. (Mary O’Donnell Hulme)

The Legacy of Bill Eppridge
2022-09-30 – 2022-11-20
Monroe Gallery of Photography – Santa Fe – New Mexico


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