The Unveiling of the Portraits of Barack Obama and Michelle Obama

On Monday, February 12, the official portraits of Barack Obama and the former first lady Michelle Obama were unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. Although such an event generally goes unnoticed and has been recently considered routine, these commissioned artworks have surprised everyone at the message that both paintings have. Both artists—Kehinde Wiley for Mr. Obama’s portrait and Amy Sherald for Mrs. Obama—subtly addressed the politics of race in these paintings.

Both of these paintings clearly distinguish themselves from the portraits of past presidents. In President Obama’s portrait, instead of remaining emotionless and composed (as is the case of his predecessors), he sits on a chair where he sits tensely forward, arms crossed, and frowning. The position reminds the viewer that Mr. Obama is still involved in the current affairs of the United States and the world. Indeed, Wiley depicts Mr. Obama, dressed in a black suit and an open-necked white shirt, as an alert yet troubled thinker. Mrs. Obama, painted against a light blue background, rests her chin on her hand and looks to the viewer with both a sense of confidence and vulnerability. The Obama’s chose the artists with great care. Mr. Wiley, who was born in 1977, gained a great following in the 2000’s with his life-size paintings of young African-American men. He has also painted female subjects as well as models from Brazil, Nigeria, and India. Ms. Shetland, born in 1973, is becoming an increasingly well-known artist (after putting her career on hold to deal with a family crisis). While Mr. Wiley has many assistants helping him, Ms. Sherald works by herself. Nonetheless, both artists are committed to promoting awareness and depicting African-American culture.

The former president’s portrait contains characteristics that must not go unnoticed. His portrait is painted in front of a fortress of foliage and flora. From this background, three types of flowers emerge, each representing a part of the former president’s history. The pink and gold flowers are known as chrysanthemums, the official flower of Chicago, where Obama began his political career (eventually becoming the senator of Illinois) and meeting her wife. The white flowers are jasmine, which represents the birthplace and childhood of Obama in Hawaii. The purple flowers are the African blue lilies, which references his Kenyan father, Barack Obama, Sr. These subtle characteristics would indeed usually go unnoticed to the average viewer. Sherald depicted Michelle Obama in a dress by Michelle Smith Milly. The dress covers the majority of Michelle’s body, which hints to feminism. Furthermore, Sherald renders the former First Lady’s portrait with gray-toned skin references racial associations, combining both realist and abstract characteristics.

If you ever find yourself at the National Portrait Gallery, Mr. Obama’s portrait will be indefinitely installed in a dedicated space on the second floor. Mrs. Obama’s portrait, however, will remain in the gallery on the first floor only until November.