Seeing Political is a Washington, D.C.-based political photography column by Louie Palu in collaboration with the Virginia Quarterly Review (VQR). Acting as a political visual columnist for a year, Palu is the first visual columnist in VQR’s 100-year history.
The goal will be to look behind the scenes and beyond news headlines, pulling back the curtain of the political stage with photo essays that complement the breaking news cycle. The essays will publish online and in print issues over the course of the year leading up to the United States' semiquincentennial in 2026, the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Building on Palu’s award-winning political coverage, Seeing Political will provide a deep look inside the federal government in political spaces in the nation’s capital, including Capitol Hill and the White House. The photo essays will deconstruct how political narratives are shaped by both parties, the media, political operatives, and how policy is enacted and fought over in Washington, D.C., during a time of extreme division and upheaval.
Image by Louie Palu.
