JFK: A Community Remembers is comprised of six major exhibits (click the photos to see larger versions):
Included in the exhibit are multimedia displays and photographs of the Kennedy assassination and funeral, representing the unprecedented media coverage the tragedy received.
"What Should Have Been" is highlighted by a memorial meant to invoke the look of Phillip Johnson's JFK Memorial in downtown Dallas. Exhibit curator Ralph Isenberg sought to improve on the memorial concept by adding quotes from Kennedy in the memorial, to better pay tribute to the President's life.
Rather than continue the "open tomb" concept of Johnson's memorial, Isenberg uses the memorial walls to celebrate Kennedy's life with a series of photos. Famous Kennedy quotes adorn the central pillar.
A display of quotes from John F. Kennedy provides a unique insight into both the President and the man. It also includes a reading area featuring books by and about Kennedy.
There is also a "Where Were You?" section, which allows visitors to record their personal memories of more recent American tragedies and share their own personal loss.
Quotes from visitors with their recollections of the Kennedy assassination, the Challenger disaster, and the 9/11 attacks are also on display. Click the photo below to view a larger version and read the quotes.
There is also a reading area featuring books by and about President Kennedy, as well as newspapers from the era.
An art exhibit celebrates the life of President Kennedy and reflects the culture of 1960s America.
The famous Kennedy bust by artist Felix de Weldon is on display.
This print by pop artist icon John Stango is one of the pieces on display.
On display is the coat and accessories worn by Dr. Adolph H. "Buddy" Giesecke Jr., one of the Parkland doctors who treated both President Kennedy and Gov. Connally in the emergency room. Dr. Giesecke wore the coat, hat, and gloves to work on November 22, 1963.
This work of art was created by the students and staff of the Kessler School in Oak Cliff. The Bank Tower at Oak Cliff general partner, Ralph Isenberg, commissioned the piece from the Kessler School, but offered no input other than to say it needed reflect positive change in the City of Dallas that President Kennedy would have approved. The piece does in fact represent this change over the last 50 years with an emphasis on changes in the arts. The Fine Arts were near and dear to President and Mrs. Kennedy, throughout his time in office. The piece includes several artistic techniques, including simple drawing, collage, and mural painting. Several art periods are also covered in this one piece, from Modernism, Post-Modernism and Expressionism.
Signed lithographs by Salvador Dali, featuring artwork inspired by the Vietnam War and the state of the country at the time, are also on display.
This 1960s-era work by Alexander Calder was created for Citizens for a Sane Nuclear Policy. A print is on display at the exhibit.
Artwork indicative of the 1960s is on display as well.
The display includes Kennedy political memorabilia and a replica of the famous Kennedy rocking chair.
Also on display is a large collection of Kennedy memorabilia from the era.
The exhibit also includes items from the Oak Cliff boarding house where Oswald lived just before the assassination. The owner of the house confirms that the items were in the home while Oswald lived there.
These letters are original marquee letters from the Texas Theatre used on November 22, 1963.
A movie camera exactly like the one Abraham Zapruder used to film the assassination is also part of the exhibit.
