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portrait unveiling

Obama Presidential Portraits Unveiled on Social Media

On Feb. 12, 2018, the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery unveiled its commissioned portraits of former President Barack Obama and Mrs. Michelle Obama by artists Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald, respectively.

President Obama was the first president of the social media era and the Smithsonian brought this national event to the world through social media. In addition to live coverage bringing audiences into the unveiling, the Smithsonian’s social media team also contextualized this moment using our collections and educational resources.

In the days before the ceremony, we shared the history of presidential portraiture, information about the artists selected to paint the museum’s official portraits, and other objects and stories related to the Obamas across our collections. Smithsonian accounts shared quotes, live video, photos, and more on Twitter, Facebook and in an Instagram Story.

Hundreds of thousands of people engaged with Smithsonian and museum accounts across multiple platforms. Smithsonian posts resulted in an estimated 3.3 million impressions.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Today we unveiled the portraits of President @barackobama and Mrs. @michelleobama at our @smithsoniannpg. The museum collects multiple images of the presidents and first ladies but also commissions a set of portraits at the end of each presidency. Kehinde Wiley, a New York-based artist, references President @barackobama’s life in the decorative background with chrysanthemums (the official flower of Chicago), jasmine (symbolic of Hawaii where the President spent most of his childhood) and African blue lilies (alluding to the President’s late Kenyan father). @kehindewiley is well known for creating vibrant, large-scale paintings of African Americans in poses resembling famous figures in the history of Western art. Amy Sherald, chosen to paint Mrs. @michelleobama, is a Baltimore-based artist known for her stylized, archetypal portrayals of African Americans. In this oil-on-linen painting, @asherald depicts the former First Lady as both confident and approachable in a dress by Michelle Smith’s label Milly. Both portraits will be on view starting Feb. 13—his permanently in the “America’s Presidents” exhibition and hers in the museum’s “Recent Acquisitions” corridor through early November 2018. #myNPG #ObamaPortraits

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Setting the Stage for the Portrait Unveiling

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

As we look forward to Monday’s unveiling of the portraits of President @barackobama and Mrs. @michelleobama at our @smithsoniannpg, we’re taking a look at their likenesses already in the collection. The museum collects multiple images of the presidents and first ladies but also commissions a set of portraits. The White House has the other collection of presidential portraits. Shepard Fairey’s Barack Obama Hope poster became an iconic campaign image. Early in 2008, the Los Angeles–based graphic designer and street artist designed his first Obama portraits—this one is done in collage, stencil and acrylic. The museum’s official portrait unveiling will be streamed live starting at 10 a.m. ET Monday. Tune in on Facebook or at npg.si.edu/obama-livestream. #ObamaPortraits #myNPG

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Live Ceremony Coverage

Obama unveiling before

Obama unveiling complete

From the Collections