The official portraits of former president Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama were unveiled to the public Monday at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.
Kehinde Wiley was responsible for Barack Obama’s portrait. Wiley is known for his fearless and intense portrayals of people of color. He fuses the everyday nature of his subjects with “Classical European portraiture,” according to TIME.
FLOTUS’ portrait was crafted by artist Amy Sherald. She is known for “using a grayscale to paint skin tones as a way of challenging the concept of color-as-race.”
TheGrio.com has scoured both Wiley and Sherald’s IG pages for more examples of their stunning visuals. Here are 5 portraits from Kehinde Wiley first, followed by 5 from Amy Sherald:
Mary Hill, Lady Killigrew
MORPHEUS 2008
The Sisters Zénaïde and Charlotte Bonaparte
Duke of Arenberg
–Flashback: Kehinde Wiley shares the methods behind his genius in this 2006 profile–
World Stage Jamaica
Keni Anwar
Stephanie N. Mills
Marissa O’Guinn
Untitled
‘All American’
Check out theGrio.com’s coverage of the Obamas’ official portraits here.