Paul Ryan’s 1960s Photo Exhibit at JFK Museum Hyannis Captures the Zeitgeist of a Generation

The John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum on Cape Cod has an exciting new exhibit entitled Paul Ryan’s 1960s, a collection from the acclaimed Boston photographer whose worked captured the zeitgeist of a generation. From Robert Kennedy skiing with family in Sun Valley to jazz legends Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonius Monk at Monterey Jazz Festival, and from the Black Power movement to the peace movement, Ryan captured indelible moments in American history. 

Bobby Kennedy

Curated by Ryan himself especially for the John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum, Paul Ryan’s 1960s is on display from July 5 through October 2025.  Museum Executive Director Wendy Northcross said, “We are very grateful to have this opportunity to share these special photos and stories from a tremendously dynamic era in our country’s history.” 

Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie

Born in Boston, Ryan graduated from Newton High School, then studied photography with Minor White, Ansel Adams, and W. Eugene Smith. He travelled the world for SKI magazine and Open Societies Foundation, photographing some of the most impactful thought-makers of the sixties and seventies, including Robert and Ethel Kennedy, singer/songwriters Jim Morrison of the Doors and Van Morrison, jazzmen Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie, novelist/artist Henry Miller and counter-cultural icon Ken Kesey.

“The 60s was a fast-moving time and an exciting time to be photographing the people creating it,” says Ryan. “I had to proceed without the luxury of certainty, relying on instinct and anticipation.”

Paul Ryan’s cinematography credits include Days of Heaven, A River Runs Through It and The Horse Whisperer.

Located at 397 Main Street in downtown Hyannis, the JFK Hyannis Museum pays homage to President Kennedy and his deep connection to Cape Cod, where he spent magical summers with his parents, siblings and cousins in his youth and later with his wife Jacqueline and children Caroline and John. Ongoing exhibits on display this summer include  “Presidential Summers: The Kennedys on Cape Cod” and “Robert F. Kennedy: Ripple of Hope.”   

Read more about the JFK Hyannis Museum in the summer issue of Travel & Culture magazine.

For more information, visit jfkhyannismuseum.org.