Empire Guest Room, John F. Kennedy Administration

This photograph of the Empire Guest Room was taken by Robert L. Knudsen on May 3, 1962, during the John F. Kennedy administration. The room is captured follow First Lady Jacqueline Kennedys redecoration of the room. Against the walls, White House curator Lorraine Waxman Pearce hung a collection of 19th-century engravings honoring the life of George Washington. The room was furnished with pieces made by French-émigré cabinetmakers and existing White House furniture. Among these were a sleigh bed believed to have belonged to President John Quincy Adams, an Empire chest of drawers, a mirrored dressing chest, and a worktable. The walls were upholstered in red and white print, a contemporary version of the French early 19th-century Toile De Jouy pattern. This pattern, originally entitled "Hommage à Franklin," depicts scenes from the life and career of Benjamin Franklin and is partially based on a drawing in the White House Collection called "The Genius of Franklin" by French artist Jean-Honore Fragonard. The guest room is located on the Third Floor of the White House.