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• Obama portraits full#

And the President and First Lady who are depicted in those portraits have seen them of course, but the reality of having them unveiled in full scale size right there in the East Room of the White House. "There's a sense of anticipation and excitement about it. The tradition of hosting the most recent former president for an unveiling was notably broken during the Trump presidency, with the former president eschewing the event - a perhaps unsurprising decision, given Trump's baseless claims that Obama spied on his 2016 presidential campaign, and was not born in the United States.ĭespite the wait, McLaurin predicted the event at the White House Wednesday would be a "happy, positive" moment for the Obamas.

President, nothing could've prepared me better or more to become President of the United States than being by your side for eight years and I mean that from the bottom of my heart,” Biden said of Obama. “There are a few people that I've ever known with more integrity, decency, and moral courage than Barack Obama. Still, the event also featured heartfelt messages from Biden and Obama, who heaped praise on their respective former running mates. He also talked me out of wearing a tanned suit, by the way,” Obama joked You'll note that he refused to hide any of my great hairs, refused my request to make my ears smaller. “He captures every wrinkle on your face, every crease in your shirt. "When this project came up, it was just perfect because it saved us the trouble of having to ask him," McCurdy said in an episode of the White House Historical Association's "1600 Sessions" podcast. McCurdy, an artist and photographer known for his hyperrealistic paintings of several well-known figures, including Toni Morrison, the Dalai Lama and Jeff Bezos, said Obama was already on his list of subjects he'd like to paint. They can do remarkable things too,” former President Obama said Wednesdayįor his portrait, the former president selected Robert McCurdy as the artist. “When future generations walk these halls and look up at these portraits, I hope they get a better and honest sense of who Michelle and I were and I hope they leave with a deeper understanding that if we could make it here, maybe they can too.

Former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama returned to the White House Wednesday, reuniting with now President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden to unveil their official portraits and introduce the artists behind them - a closely-held secret in Washington after an unusually long wait for their reveal.