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1 of 27Protesters convened at Franklin Roosevelt Park outside the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center on July 25, 2016 in Philadelphia, PA.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
2 of 27Protesters convene at City Hall in Philadelphia to watch speaker Jill Stein and protest the Democratic National Convention in Pennsylvania on July 26, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
3 of 27People watch and take photos as protestors march from City Hall to the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
4 of 27Democratic National Convention protesters assemble at Philadelphia City Hall in Pennsylvania on July 27, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
5 of 27Protesters convene at Franklin Roosevelt Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
6 of 27Protesters marched from City Hall to the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
7 of 27Kim Hughes, 19, of Hatboro, Pennsylvania, poses for a portrait outside city hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Monday, July 25, 2016. "The illusion of democracy harms a lot of people. People think they have rights they think they have a say. But we have police brutality, we have people dying every month. I'm in support of Jill Stein. She's eco socialist."Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
8 of 27Protesters convene at Franklin Roosevelt Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
9 of 27Democratic National Convention protesters assemble at Philadelphia City Hall in Pennsylvania on July 27, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
10 of 27Security backstage on the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania July 28, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
11 of 27President Barack Obama addresses the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 27, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
12 of 27Bill Clinton speaks at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 26, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
13 of 27Protesters march from City Hall to the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
14 of 27Protesters marched from City Hall to the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
15 of 27Latisha Richards, left, watched the protests with a client and colleague. When asked what she thought of the protest she said "Exciting. Because..." Then she read onf of the protesters signs, smiling "Because we need to end the racist drug war." Protesters marched from City Hall to the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
16 of 27Press, Delegates and attendees converged at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center on July 27, 2016 in Philadelphia.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
17 of 27Protester Eric Verlo poses with a fellow protester who declined to give her name. The pair are dressed as an oil tycoon and the victims of collateral damage in the wars in the Middle East. "It's important to counter the mainstream message that elections matter or represent the will of the people. Both are corporate parties held up by corporate media and corporate interests. Hillary is the candidate of the war machine." said Verlo. Protesters marched from City Hall to the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
18 of 27Protesters convene at Franklin Roosevelt Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
19 of 27Outside the main arena at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 26, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
20 of 27Donald Trump appears on a jumbo screen on first night of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Monday, July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
21 of 27Press, delegates and ticketed attendees converge at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 27, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
22 of 27Protesters marched from City Hall to the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
23 of 27Democratic National Convention protesters assemble at Philadelphia City Hall in Pennsylvania on July 27, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
24 of 27Press, Delegates and ticketed attendees converged at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center on July 27, 2016 in Philadelphia.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
25 of 27Press, delegates and ticketed attendees converge at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 27, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
26 of 27Press, delegates and ticketed attendees converge at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 27, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME -
27 of 27Press, delegates and ticketed attendees converge at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 27, 2016.Natalie Keyssar for TIME
The man is flooded in blue light; his eyes intensely looking up at a giant screen in the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia as President Barack Obama is about to take the stage on the third night of the Democratic National Convention. “I was wondering what was going on in his head,” says photographer Natalie Keyssar. Was it approval? Was it disapproval? “I can’t tell what he was thinking.”
Keyssar was captivated by the man’s intense gaze. “Something really hit me,” she says. For the past four days, the 32-year-old photographer has found herself attracted by the fringes of the historic moment, when one of America’s major parties selects, for the first time, a woman to run for the country’s highest office. “Photographically, I think I’m more interested by wherever anyone isn’t looking,” she says. “I want to see what it means. You can’t see what something means by looking directly at it.”
Keyssar’s photographs portray the people who rebelled against their own party, taking to Philadelphia’s streets to advocate for their own political beliefs, often at odds with the Democrats’ official platform. “Society has a tendency of focussing on the celebrities and those who have power,” says Keyssar, “when the whole point of this convention is that the power is supposed to come from the people.”
Natalie Keyssar is a freelance photojournalist based in New York. Last year she photographed our cover story on What It’s Like To Be a Cop In America Today.
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