Live updates: Obama portrait unveiling at the White House | CNN Politics (2024)

Former President Barack Obama kisses former first lady Michelle Obama at their portrait unveiling on Wednesday.

The Obamas’ official White House portraits were unveiled in a ceremony Wednesday in the East Room.

The history-making portraits stand in contrast to those of other US presidents and their spouses hung on the White House walls, depicting the first Black President and first lady through the perspectives of contemporary artists working outside many of the conventions of traditional political portraiture.

President Obama’s image was painted by Robert McCurdy and Michelle Obama’s portrait was painted by Sharon Sprung.

McCurdy told the White House Historical Association in an interview that his process focused on working off of a photograph of the former President. The photorealistic image of the former President, dressed in a black suit with a gray tie, is painted against a minimal white backdrop — a signature of McCurdy’s artworks. McCurdy said his paintings take at least a year to complete.

The former first lady’s portrait was painted by Sprung, who describes her work as “contemporary realism.” The image depicts Michelle Obama in a blue dress, seated on a sofa in the Red Room of the White House. The artwork was painted from photographs taken in different locations on the White House’s State Floor.

Here are the portraits side-by-side:

President Barack Obama's portrait was painted by Robert McCurdy. First lady Michelle Obama was painted by Sharon Sprung.

The Obamas’ official portraits have now been hung in the White House.

President Obama’s is hanging in the Grand Foyer at the base of the main White House staircase, replacing the portrait of former President Clinton.

It hangs above a small red sofa.

Former first lady Michelle Obama’s is hanging one floor below, along the ground floor hallway. It’s hanging within one of the recessed archways that line the hallway.

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden hosted the Obamas for a private lunch at the White House today before the portrait unveiling, an official told CNN, a quiet session that gave the families a chance to catch up before be joined by a few hundred guests at the ceremony.

The lunch also included Marian Robinson, the mother of Michelle Obama, but the table was limited to those five.

Conversation at the lunch was more focused on nostalgia, an official said, rather than a strategy session on midterm elections or pending policies.

But the full extent of the discussion was not immediately shared with top aides, the official said, who described the lunch as private.

A White House military social aide looks on in the Grand Foyer, near a portrait of former President Bill Clinton, in November.

President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden are now hosting the Obamas and their guests for refreshments in the State Dining Room, following the official unveiling of the portraits, which are expected to be hung this week at the White House.

If tradition holds, the portrait of former President Barack Obama will be on prominent display in the Grand Foyers of the White House, just off the Cross Hall that connects the East Room and the State Dining Room.

Portraits of former President George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and others will shift to other positions.

Former First Lady Michelle Obama’s portrait will hang in the lower level of the White House, where other first ladies adorn the walls.

During former President Donald Trump’s time in office, he moved the portraits of Clinton and Bush and replaced them with William McKinley, the nation’s 25thPresident and Theodore Roosevelt, who succeeded McKinley.

The portraits of Bush and Clinton were restored to their place of prominence when Biden took office.

Former first lady Michelle Obama addressed the larger message of inclusion that the unveiling of her and former President Barack Obama’s White House portraits sends to people in the country and around the world.

“Because as Barack said, if the two of us can end up on thewalls of the most famous addressin the world, then, again, it isso important for every young kidwho is doubting themselves tobelieve that they can too.That is what this country isabout,” Obama added.

Obama continued her remarks by stating that the significance of the event extends beyond the unveiling of portraits.

The former first lady ended her address with a message of hope.

“And as much as some folks mightwant us to believe that thatstory has lost some of itsshine, that division anddiscrimination and everything else might have dimmed itslight, I still know, deep in myheart, that what we share as myhusband continues to say is somuch bigger than what we don’t.Our democracy is so muchstronger than our differences,and this little girl from the south side is blessed beyond measure to have felt the truthof that fuller story throughouther entire life, never more sothan today.So thank you to President Biden,to Sharon, and to all of youtoday for playing a part in thisday and all the days that led toit,” Obama said.

Former President Barack Obama listens to his wife, Michelle, speak on Wednesday.

Former first lady Michelle Obama noted the historic nature of the unveiling of the White House portraits of her and former President Barack Obama on Wednesday, using her remarks to highlight the importance of traditions, like the portrait unveiling and a peaceful transition of power, for American democracy.

She continued, “You see the people, they maketheir voices heard with their vote. We hold an inauguration to ensure a peaceful transition of power. Those of us lucky enough toserve, work, as Barack said, ashard as we can for as long as wecan, as long as the peoplechoose to keep us here. And onceour time is up, we move on, andall that remains in thishallowed place are our goodefforts and these portraits.”

Obamaalso reflected on her time asfirst ladyand what moments like this could represent for future generations.

“Portraits that connect ourhistory to the present day. Portraits that hang here as history continues to be made.So for me, this day is not justabout what has happened.It’s also about what couldhappen because a girl like me,she was never supposed to be upthere next to Jacqueline Kennedyand Dolley Madison.She was never supposed to livein this house, and shedefinitely wasn’t supposed toserve as first lady,” Obama noted.

CNN’s Sam Fossum contributed reporting to this post.

Former first lady Michelle Obama on Wednesday talked about raising her two daughters at the White House and gave special thanks to the residence staff who made it feel like “a home.”

Obama also gave special thanks to the residence staff who worked at the White House for the two terms former President Barack Obama was in office.

“I also want to take the time torecognize the residence staff.As Barack said, you guys madethis a home. We snatched up a few of you all and took you with us, but forthose of you who we couldn’tbring, we miss you so much.We miss you so much.The best part about this housewas you all, so it’s so good tosee you, and you all look good,” she said.

Former President Barack Obama thanked the artists who created their White House portraits, noting that “it was important to find theright people to paint them.”

He then went on to thank the artist who painted him, Robert McCurdy for“taking on a much more difficultsubject and doing a fantasticjob with mine.”

“He captures every wrinkle onyour face, every crease in yourshirt.You’ll note that he refused tohide any of my gray hairs.Refused my request to make myears smaller,” he added.

Obama joked McCurdy “also talked me out of wearinga tan suit, by the way.”

The former President noted that McCurdy’s work “is so precise that atfirst glance it looks like aphotograph.”

President Biden spoke on Wednesday of the close relationship he and his family shared with the Obamas throughout the the former President’s two terms in office.

The President said, “I remember how youwere with me when our son waspassing, and I remember theeulogy you gave on his behalf.You’ll never fully understandjust how much it meant to Jilland me and the entire family.”

Biden recalled the night he and Obama accepted the nomination for President and vice president in 2008.

“I always remember that night weaccepted the nomination inDenver.My granddaughter Finnegan, who is a greatfriend of your daughters, cameup to our room and said, Pop,can we, can we move the bedsout of my room? And I said, why do you want tomove the beds out of your room?She said well so, her two sisters, Malia and Sasha, we could allget sleeping begs and lie on thefloor and sleep together andwatch the convention on thefloor,” Biden said.

He continued, “That image of them all togetherwill stay with me forever, and Ithink it melded our families inways that it’s hard for otherpeople to understand.”

Former President Barack Obama speaks during Wednesday's ceremony.

Former President Barack Obama said that “it’s good to be back” at the White House after the unveiling of his and Michelle Obama’s White House portraits.

The former President reflected on his eight years working with then-Vice President Joe Biden, describing him as someone who “became a true partner and a true friend.”

The former President took the time to thank his and Biden’s former staffers during his remarks.

“To all the former Obama Bidenstaffers who are here in person,some of you are watching athome, thank you for being a partof this,” he said in remarks from the East Room.

“When people ask me what I missmost about the white houseyears, it is not Air Force Onethat I talk about, although Imiss Air Force one.It’s the chance that I had tostand shoulder to shoulder withall of you, to have a chance towitness so many talented,selfless, idealistic, goodpeople working tirelessly everyday to make the world better,” Obama said.

CNN’s Sam Fossum contributed reporting to this post.

President Joe Biden speaks during Wednesday's ceremony.

President Biden opened his remarks at the ceremony by saying to the former President and first lady, “welcome home.”

Quoting President John F. Kennedy, Biden said: “every Presidentmust endure the gap between whathe would like and what ispossible.”

“He was right,” Biden added. “The history books are full ofstories about presidents tryingto bridge that gap … the difficult decisions,how the work is always seriousand often solemn.”

He continued: “And all of that’s true, but sois this, with Barack as ourPresident, we got up every dayand went to work full of hopefor real, full of purpose, andexcited about the possibilitybefore us.”

Biden told Obama that “nothing couldhave prepared me better or moreto become president” than to “be at yourside for eight years, and I meanthat from the bottom of myheart.”

Artist Robert McCurdy, who painted former President Barack Obama, attends Wednesday's ceremony.

When artist Robert McCurdy was taking the high-resolution photograph he would use to paint President Barack Obama’s official portrait, he had some instructions: No smile, no gestures and look directly into the camera.

“We’re not looking for a gestural moment,” McCurdy said in an interview recently with the White House Historical Association, which acquires and funds official portraits of presidents and first ladies. “We’re looking for a more meditative or transcendent moment.”

Years later, those instructions have translated into a strikingly different style of official presidential painting. Set to be unveiled Wednesday in a ceremony in the East Room, the portrait of Obama is a photorealist picture of the former President set against a plain white background.

Wearing a black suit, white shirt and a light gray tie with his hands in his pockets, Obama looks out from the canvas at the viewer with an enigmatic expression. Nothing else disrupts the white background.

After the initial photo was taken from which McCurdy painted, the former President had no say in the final portrait, according to the artist.

“It is part of my process that the sitter doesn’t get to say anything about how the painting looks. They’re completely outside the process,” he said. “He was open to that and accepting of that process, so he never saw the images that we worked from.”

Former first lady Michelle Obama was equally hands off with her final portrait after posing for photographs with her portraitist, New York-based artist Sharon Sprung, in the White House.

“I felt this trust come from her, that you do your thing, I do my thing, I’m going to trust you with your thing, and I think portraiture works better sometimes like that. That she didn’t contribute that much other than present herself,” Sprung told the historical association.

Sharon Sprung, who painted Michelle Obama's portrait, applauds during Wednesday's ceremony.

Like her husband’s, Michelle Obama’s portrait is painted in a distinctive style that breaks a mold of the more traditional portraits hung in the White House. Wearing a powder blue off-the-shoulder gown, she sits on a sofa from the White House Red Room, posing against a terra-cotta backdrop. Like the former President, she stares directly out of the frame at the viewer.

The paintings are historic in another way: They capture the first Black president and first lady.

“They do look different. But I also don’t think that it needs to be explained to people. I think people seem to get it,” McCurdy said.

When the Obamas selected artists for earlier portraits hung at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, they selected Black painters who at that point were still emerging into the field.

Read more about the portraits here.

Former President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden are trailed by former first lady Michelle Obama and first lady Jill Biden as they arrive for Wednesday's ceremony.

The unveiling ceremony for former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama’s portraits has begun in the East Room of the White House.

It is the first time the Obamas have returned to the White House together since January 2017.

The pieces, which will hang inside the White House for decades to come, are the first official portraits added to the White House Collection since then-President Obama held an emotional, bipartisan unveiling ceremonyfor George W. Bush and Laura Bush in 2012.

The artists behind the Obamas’ portraits areRobert McCurdy, who painted former President Barack Obama, andSharon Sprung, who painted first lady Michelle Obama.

Here’s more background on both established artists:

McCurdy, whose signature is hyper-photorealistic paintings set against white backdrops, has painted Jeff Bezos, Nelson Mandela, the Dalai Lama and Jane Goodall, among others.

Sprung has had a long career in figurative painting, including paintings for Congress, and has a connection to past-White House portraits: when she was younger, she developed an artistic relationship with Aaron Shikler, who painted iconic White House portraits of JFK, Jackie Kennedy and Nancy Reagan.

The process of selecting the artists began when the Obamas were still in the White House. Sprung interviewed with both Obamas in the Oval Office, bringing with her some drawings of Mrs. Obama. Thelma Golden, director of the Studio Museum in Harlem, sat in on Sprung’s interview with the Obamas.

Former President Obama posed for a high-resolution photograph that McCurdy painted from. McCurdy takes about 100 photos, but paints from only one of them and destroys the other photos.

Of the photo session, McCurdy said Obama was “charming” and “very present.” His instructions to the president were to “look directly into the lens” and not to smile or gesture.

After the initial photo was taken from which McCurdy painted, the former president had no say in the final portrait, according to the artist: “He was open to that and accepting of that process,” he said in an interview with the White House Historical Association.

Michelle Obama was equally hands off with her final portrait after posing for Sprung in the White House Blue Room: “She didn’t contribute that much other than present herself,” Sprungsaid.

McCurdy takes 12 to 18 months with each painting, and works exclusively on one painting at a time.

Sprung took 8 months to complete Michelle Obama’s painting, and it was the longest she’d ever worked on one painting. She said the hardest part for her was the dress. “I knew it was done when she started to breathe.”

Several top officials in the Obama administration returned to the White House on Wednesday for the official unveiling of the official portraits of former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama.

Former White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett, who served in the Obama administration from 2009 2017, was initially stuck waiting with the press after being escorted into the White House before being whisked in through another door.

Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and former CIA director John Brennan were spotted catching up over coffee at the Peet’s Coffee across the street from the White House ahead of the portrait unveiling.

The East Room of the White House has the feel of a family reunion — for Democrats, at least — as dozens of friends and aides from the Obama and Biden administration have taken their seats and are chatting loudly.

The covered portraits are at the front of the room, below paintings of George and Martha Washington.

Today’s event brings to mind the last presidential portrait unveiling ceremony at the White House, which took place a little more than a decade ago, when the Obamas invited the Bushes to the East Room. It was a rare bipartisan respite in the middle of Obama’s reelection campaign.

“Thank you so much for inviting our rowdy friends to my hanging,” former President George W. Bush said, giving a nod to several members of his Cabinet and staff who joined him in returning to the White House.

For his part, Obama praised Bush for his “extraordinary strength and resolve” after theSept. 11attacks. To lighten the moment, he added: “Plus, you also left me a really good TV sports package. I use it.”

Former President George H.W. Bush watched the festivities from the front row, laughing and smiling throughout the ceremony. It was a meeting of the so-called President’s Club – a partial one, at least – in an era of comity and respect for the exclusive fraternity of leaders.

Former US President Bill Clinton and former first lady Hillary Clinton have their official White House portraits unveiled in 2004.

The unveiling of presidential portraitstypicallytakes place in the White House’s East Room, where both the artists who created the pieces and the works themselves are unveiled at what’s generally known to be a bipartisan and collegial Washington affair.

Former President Barack Obama hosted George W. Bush in 2012, Bush hosted Bill Clinton in 2004, Clinton hosted George H.W. Bush in 1995, and the elder Bush hosted Ronald Reagan in 1989.

First ladies also attend the ceremony, and their portraits are unveiled as well.

Undera processadministered by the White House Historical Association, presidents and first ladies typically choose a portraitist before leaving the White House. Sittings and final approval of the paintings occur afterward. Presidents and first ladies typically approve portraits before they’re unveiled to the public and inducted into the White House collection.

The association says all presidents since Jimmy Carter —who asked not to have a ceremony — have returned to the White House for an unveiling.

The Obama portraits that will sit in the White House are distinct from the portraits unveiled in 2018 for the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in Washington. The portraits commissioned by the portrait gallery arecurrently on an extended nationwide tour.

The Obamas selected Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald — portraitists known for their work depicting Black individuals — for their Smithsonian pieces. While living and working in the White House, the Obamasintegrateda broad swath of modern and contemporary pieces across the White House and the residence.

Former President Barack Obama visited the White House in April.

Former President Obamahas visited the White House since President Biden took office, but Wednesday’s event will mark former first lady Michelle Obama’s first time back in the building since the Trumps arrived in January 2017.

President Biden and Obama forged a close relationship when serving in office together, but their friendship has its limits. While they speak occasionally, they are not in daily or weekly contact, people familiar with the matter have said.

After two terms working in Obama’s shadow, Biden has, at moments, differentiated himself from his predecessor. Officials have said there is also a degree of competition between the two men.

Their history, while one of partnership, has also been colored by various slights — real or perceived — that still linger.

Obama declined to endorse Biden over other Democrats in the 2020 primary, a step both men insisted was necessary to allow a true contest within the party. Four years earlier, Obama had viewed Hillary Clinton as his Democratic successor instead of Biden, who decided not to run as he grappled with his son’s death.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the unveiling would mark a lasting symbol of “the power of hope and change” in the White House.

Jean-Pierre highlighted the relationship between the two presidents, saying, “Over the course of their eight years together in office, a close partnership between the two men grew through the highs and lows of the job and of life.”

The Obamas’ joint return to the White Housemarks a rare moment for the current and past administrations to converge and look back on a presidential legacy.

Unlike the 2012 unveiling of the Bush’s portraits, Wednesday’s event will mostly host attendees from the same party — with some attendees having connections to both administrations.

The Obamas will be joined by family, friends, former Cabinet members and top staffers from the administration during the unveiling.

Marian Robinson, the mother of Michelle Obama who lived in the White House residence during their presidency, is also planning to attend the ceremony, an Obama aide tells CNN, but daughters Malia and Sasha are not scheduled to join their parents.

Other expected attendees include:

First lady Michelle Obama speaks at the White House as portraits are unveiled of former US President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush in 2012.

Former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama will visit the White House on Wednesday for theunveiling of their official White House portraits— marking their first joint return since they left in 2017 and the return of a Washington tradition last celebrated 10 years ago.

The pieces, which will hang inside the White House for decades to come, are the first official portraits added to the White House Collection since Obama held an emotional, bipartisan unveiling ceremonyfor George W. Bush and Laura Bush in 2012.

Wednesday’s ceremony in the East Room marks a rare occasion for a celebration among two presidential administrations inside 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, where President Biden and first lady Jill Biden are expected to convene a who’s who of administration officials past and present — from the unique vantage point of having served in both.

It was in the same room Obama awarded Biden a surprise Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2017, a teary ceremony that reflected the two men’s deep mutual respect. While both like to play up their relationship in public, there are limits to their friendship, officials have said.

Stewart McLaurin, the president of the White House Historical Association, told CNN that the Covid-19 pandemic played a factor in the timing of the unveiling. The WHHA, a nonprofit organization, facilitates and funds the creation of the portraits.

“Covid impacted us two-and-a-half years ago, and I do think it’s important for these (portraits) to be revealed at a time when the public does have access to the White House and they can be seen,” McLaurin said.

While there’s no hard-and-fast rule for when a White House portrait ought to be unveiled, ceremonies have often been hosted by a former president’s immediate successor. And when in office, former President Donald Trump never held a ceremony for the Obama portraits.

At the portrait unveiling ceremony today in the East Room, both the current and former President are set to speak. Both the current and former first lady will also deliver remarks.

A White House official said President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will speak, along with former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama.

The program is designed much like the one a decade ago when the Obamas welcomed the Bushes to the White House, with all four principles delivering brief remarks.

President Barack Obama applauds former President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush during their portrait unveiling in 2012.

Wednesday’s unveiling of the Obama portraits at the White House marks the return of a Washington tradition last celebrated 10 years ago.

Here’s a look at some of the past portrait unveiling events:

Former President Bill Clinton unveils his portrait in 2004.

Former President George H.W. Bush and his wife, Barbara, admire his portrait in 1995.

Former President Ronald Reagan and former first lady Nancy Reagan look at a portrait of the former president along with President George H.W. Bush and first lady Barbara Bush in 1989.

President Jimmy Carter shakes hands with former President Gerald R. Ford at Ford's portrait unveiling in 1978.

The Obamaswill be back at the White House on Wednesday. The fact it took this long tells the tale of America’s bitter, fractured politics.

The former first couple will attend the unveiling of their official White House portraits — an honor accorded to all former presidents and their spouses. The 44th president was back at his old digsearlier this year for a health care eventwith President Joe Biden, but it will be former first lady Michelle Obama’s first return since shehanded the presidential mansion overto the Trumps on Jan. 20, 2017.

Generally, the portrait ceremony takes place during the succeeding presidency — typically a lighthearted affair to show bipartisanship and continuity across party lines. Yet, to no one’s surprise, Obama’s portrait dedication didn’t happen during his successor’s White House term; ex-President Donald Trump had no interest in sharing the presidential limelight with anyone. And Obama was hardly going to stand beside the man who authored a racist conspiracy theory that he wasn’t born in the United States. So it has fallen to Biden to do the honors.

Such ceremonies also serve as a reminder that presidents serve all Americans, and that some things — like respect for an office first held by George Washington —supersede politics. Sitting presidents often pay tribute to their predecessor’s record in office, going out of their way to find areas of agreement even if they were from different parties. In the portrait ceremony during then-President Bill Clinton’s first term, he praised predecessor George H.W. Bush — an ex-World War II pilot, US representative to China, CIA chief, vice president and President —for an “entire lifetime of public service.” Bush was gracious in return. And like all returning presidents, he said how much he loved the permanent White House staff and even confessed to missing the press corps.

The event was especially poignant as a show of unity because Clinton had beaten Bush in an acrimonious election in 1992 — though they later became friends.

Keep reading here.

Details about the official White House portraits of former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama being unveiled on Wednesday are a tightly held secret, with artists and art movers signing confidentiality agreements to keep things under wraps before the big day. But the Obamas have often used art as a tool to express their tastes, so it should come as no surprise that their White House portraits are expected to do the same.

He continued, “We’re now in the heading towards the first third of the 21st century. And I think in the mind’s eye of most Americans, we see presidential portraits as these very traditional, 19th-century-looking-and-feeling portraits. But art and taste in art evolves and changes.”

While living at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the Obamas opted to highlight several contemporary and modern artists.

A Robert Rauschenberg painting replaced a portrait of a Roosevelt in the family dining room. Mark Rothko and Josef Albers works were installed. And Michelle Obama brought in work fromAlma Thomas— the first Black female artist in the White House Collection.

Since leaving the presidency, the Obamas have staked some of their post-White House careers in taste-making — producing podcasts andaward-winning films, as well as curating playlists and book lists each year.

For theirportraits unveiled in 2018at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery (which are not to be confused with new official White House portraits being unveiled this week), the Obamas chose two Black artists with unique perspectives on African American portraiture.

Amy Sherald, who painted the first lady’s Smithsonian portrait, challenges conventions about race by depicting her figures’ skin in shades of gray. Kehinde Wiley, who painted the former President, reimagines Old Master paintings with Black subjects.

Traditionally, the two latest sets of presidential portraits are placed in the Cross Hall of the White House — though former President Trump chose to move portraits of former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton into a storage room after feuding with both families.

Biden moved the Bush and Clinton portraits back to the Cross Hall, but with a new Obama portrait, Clinton may have to be relocated soon.