Barack Obama and his wife Michelle returned on Wednesday, 7 September 2022, to the White House to unveil their official portraits more than five years after the former United States president left office.
Barack and Michelle Obama return to the White House: Here’s what we know
As reported by SkyNews, Joe Biden and First Lady Jill invited the Obamas back to their former home, where their official White House portraits were unveiled.
This would be their first joint visit to the building since they left in 2017. It was Michelle’s first visit since her husband’s presidency ended in January 2017. Barack visited in April 2022 to help celebrate the anniversary of the significant healthcare law he signed.
The portraits of the Obamas stand in contrast to those of other US presidents and their spouses. The first Black President and first lady are depicted from the perspectives of contemporary artists. These artists work outside of the many conventions of traditional political portraiture.
Barack’s portrait was painted in a photorealistic style by artist Robert McCurdy. He is depicted on a white background. Previously, McCurdy did portraits of Toni Morrison and Nelson Mandela.
Brooklyn artist Sharon Sprung captured Michelle. She is pictured in a blue dress in the White House’s Red Room.
Barack took to his Instagram page to share pictures of the official event.
“These portraits by Robert McCurdy and Sharon Sprung will hang in the White House alongside portraits of other presidents and first ladies dating back to George and Martha Washington,” Barack wrote in his caption.
He went on further to say:
“I want to thank Sharon Sprung for capturing everything I love about Michelle. Her portrait is stunning. And I want to thank Robert McCurdy for taking on a much more difficult subject and doing a fantastic job with mine.”
While it is customary for a former president to return for the unveiling, Donald Trump did not hold a ceremony for the Obama’s while he held the top job.
Before winning the 2016 election and succeeding Obama, Trump was a longtime believer of the “birther” movement that falsely suggested Obama was not born in the United States and should not be president.
