This week, the National Portrait Gallery unveiled the official portraits of former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama.
Related: Obama picks brilliant gay artist Kehinde Wiley to paint his official portrait
Mr. Obama’s portrait was done by openly gay artist Kehinde Wiley. Some of the other cultural figures Wiley has painted include the Notorious B.I.G., LL Cool J, Big Daddy Kane, Ice T, and Michael Jackson.
Related: Footage of Michelle Obama at Beyonce’s b-day party leaks online
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The painting is definitely a departure from past presidential portraits hanging in the gallery, which is part of why we love it. Also, it’s inspired some amazing memes.
Scroll down for our favorite Obama presidential portrait memes (so far!)…
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfHRq12h6ny/?utm_source=ig_embed
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfHYsZpAX6y/?utm_source=ig_embed
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfJGo1JlPmT/?hl=en&tagged=obama
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfJSEMlln-k/?utm_source=ig_embed
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfHNJL9AUyc/?hl=en&tagged=obamaportrait
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfI6b6Rn3p4/?hl=en&tagged=obama
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfJGxsdgRBd/?hl=en&tagged=obama
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfI_T14htjJ/?hl=en&tagged=obama
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfJLclCDg-K/?hl=en&tagged=obamaportrait
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfJSsxphe1J/?hl=en&tagged=obama
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https://www.instagram.com/p/BfJSaEtAyoQ/?hl=en&tagged=obama
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfHLW2bheug/?hl=en&tagged=obamabeyonce
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https://www.instagram.com/p/BfI9hFsACyt/?hl=en&tagged=obama
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfJPAZDhwdl/?hl=en&tagged=obama
Related: Is a bromance brewing? Obama can’t get enough of Frank Ocean
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Kangol
These are cute. Remember when the GOP became hysterical over Obama’s tan suit? And remember when they spent millions of dollars and found nothing on Benghazi? And remember how they obstructed him for 8 straight years, including doing anything to help the US economy, which nevertheless grew steadily under Obama’s watch, pulling us out of the worst depression since the 1930s and 40s, despite the fact that he won the Presidency twice, by sizable electoral and popular vote margins? And remember how they resisted again and again as he pushed for and helped to enact the most far-reaching LGBTQ rights in our history?
Meanwhile, they twiddle their thumbs as the corrupt, racist liar-in-chief refuses to impose sanctions on Russia (why?), refuses to tell the truth about his ties to Russia (why?), refuses to stop enriching his private businesses through his government contacts (why?), refuses to share his taxes (why?), refuses to tell GOP fanatics around the country to stop their anti-LGBTQ policies and legislation (why?), refuses to stop contravening his campaign promises or the positive things his staff are trying to do (why?), refuses to act like a president and not a dictator.
ChrisK
Last one is best.
Paul Nadolski
Love the Trump and cheeseburgers one. So spot-on. Incidentally, to me the portrait of Mr. Obama looks like he’s being enveloped in the Wrigley Field ivy (which is weird b/c I believe he’s a White Sox fan, not a Cubs fan).
Kangol
Great catch! I wonder if anyone has pointed this out to him, if he didn’t already notice it? Cubs strike again!
Kieran
The painting reminds me of that old saying, “Does a bear shit in the woods”.
Kieran
This is what happens when you hire people based on their race instead of their talent.
BrettJ
Oh Jesus, gross.
Kehinde Wiley is an incredibly talented and unique portrait artist. You can dislike his style and dislike this portrait (that’s your opinion), but don’t come for his talent.
ham
Kehinde Wiley is a top notch artist well sought out by major museums and colectors. It’s a fantastic piece of art.
mhoffman953
The artwork is unoriginal considering the background was outsourced to a Chinese printing company and wasn’t painted unique by hand: https://i.imgur.com/KJ3xn0N.jpg (notice the identical repeating patterns)
Secondly, the imagery is flat without proper shadowing. Also, Obama’s hand is larger than his entire forearm.
Lastly, why would Obama choose this artist considering he has repeatedly painted imagery of blacks beheading whites? https://i.imgur.com/jgYXDbU.jpg
If President Trump chose an artist who paints whites beheading blacks, there would be outcry, they would want him to disavow, want it repainted, and would probably refuse to hang the artwork over that fact.
Kangol
mhoffman953, you seem to grow more clueless by the day, but a steady diet of FauxNews and Breitbart will do that to you.
The beheading images are a take on the famous story of Judith Beheading Holofernes, in the Bible, and painted numerous times by European artists, including Botticelli, Giorgione, Cranach the Elder, Caravaggio, Gentileschi, Goya, Klimt, and von Stuck, to name just a few. If you did even a cursory reading of Wiley’s work, you’d know that he has repeated repurposed prior European, often Renaissance and Romantic imagery, replacing the white figures with black ones.
Stupidity is not bliss, nor is racism.
mhoffman953
@Kangol
Amid your ad-hominem insults towards me, I am aware of the artist and his “repurposing” of Judith beheading Holofernes from the Bible BUT he purposely chose to paint a black person beheading a white person in the same pose. He made the cognitive choice to paint a black person beheading a white woman. He didn’t paint a black person beheading another black person (which would probably be a more thought provoking statement). He’s not simply paying homage to a Biblical story, he’s painting an anti-white agenda.
If another artist painted the same thing but with the races reversed, you would absolutely scream racism.
Instead, you’ll call me clueless, stupid, and racist. Even though nothing I said was racist but merely pointing out hypocrisy between those who love Obama and hate Trump
Blackceo
Kangol……
Stop feeding the f*cking trolls!!!! STAHP IT!!!!!!
Juanjo
I am surprised the sock puppets are not on board with Hannity’s screech on the portrait today.
https://www.aol.com/article/entertainment/2018/02/13/sean-hannity-tweets-that-president-obamas-portrait-is-sexually-explicit-then-deletes-it-hours-later/23360754/
mhoffman953
@Juanjo
Two things
One – no one cares what Sean Hannity says
Two – why are you still using AOL?
jess_lopez
So you’re talking about Trump, right?
Blackceo
LOL some of those memes were hilarious. Oh the Trumpanzees were definitely out in full force yesterday. So glad the Obamas picked those talented artists. The negative response by the right not liking the “non traditional” nature of the portraits is exactly why I’m glad they went with these particular artists. Why have another boring picture of the Obamas perched beside a fireplace or the American flag somewhere in there?
I don’t know much about art but once it was explained about the grayscale method of Michelle’s portrait being a nod to African American photos of the 19th and 20th century, and the background of Obama’s symbolizing that the garden fights for attention as if to ask what’s more important, the story or the man inhabiting the story, I totally got it. I’m more lukewarm on Michelle’s portrait, but I love President Obama’s. Things like this are obviously too cerebral for some to appreciate given some of the comments.