The Obama Portraits Drew a Strong Reaction. What Did They Mean to You?
- 6 years ago
The Obama Portraits Drew a Strong Reaction. What Did They Mean to You?
Mr. Wiley told our art reporter Robin Pogrebin that he and Mr. Obama “decided very quickly
that we were just going to strike out a path of our own.” The artists themselves, both African-American, have a history of tackling race issues — surely adding to the context with each the paintings were completed.
The paintings — Mr. Obama’s by Kehinde Wiley and Mrs. Obama’s by Amy Sherald — elicited strong
reactions for their striking use of colors and the backgrounds in which the Obamas were set.
Monday morning joy as portraits of President and First Lady Obama are revealed by artists Amy Sherald and Kehinde Wiley.
The background for Mr. Obama’s painting is not a dark, solid color,
but rather a lush bed of bright green leaves, with his chair almost suspended in midair.
Mr. Wiley told our art reporter Robin Pogrebin that he and Mr. Obama “decided very quickly
that we were just going to strike out a path of our own.” The artists themselves, both African-American, have a history of tackling race issues — surely adding to the context with each the paintings were completed.
The paintings — Mr. Obama’s by Kehinde Wiley and Mrs. Obama’s by Amy Sherald — elicited strong
reactions for their striking use of colors and the backgrounds in which the Obamas were set.
Monday morning joy as portraits of President and First Lady Obama are revealed by artists Amy Sherald and Kehinde Wiley.
The background for Mr. Obama’s painting is not a dark, solid color,
but rather a lush bed of bright green leaves, with his chair almost suspended in midair.