Alice Bershtein

Politicizing Presidential Portraits?

On Monday, February 12th, the official portraits of the 44th President and First Lady of The United States were revealed to the public in the National Portrait Gallery. Their unconventional use of posture, color, and texture, caused a bit of a stir in terms of the dis-similarity to prior presidential renderings. Discussing works of art and debating their value is a worthwhile endeavor, but many across the country are using this innocuous public celebration of Obama’s presidency, as a point of political outrage. With so many upheavals in this country and the world at large, it seems almost silly to get upset over the artistic styles of the chosen portraitists.