Obama's White House Portrait (unfinished)
On Wednesday, September 7, Barack and Michelle Obama were back at the White House, hosted by President Biden for the unveiling of their official White House portraits. Read more about the portraits at the White House and see the past presidents' portraits here.
My thoughts on the portrait
I was excited to see this event took place because I had been curious for a while now what Obama's portrait would look like. These kind of portraits often contain a lot of symbolism included by the artist or at the request of the subject. For example, Lyndon Johnson's White House portrait depicts the US Capitol dome in the background, a nod to Johnson's estimable career in the U.S. Senate (from Texas). George H.W. Bush's portrait depicts him holding a piece of paper standing in front of a globe. Before assuming the presidency, Bush held various international posts as Nixon's ambassador to China, Director of the CIA, and US Ambassador to the United Nations.
Anyway, Obama's clearly lacks any trinkets or scenery that will help frame his legacy. But that does not mean there is no symbolism.
I was surprised when I first saw the Obama painting. It is not a traditional, staid portrait. While I wasn't struck by love for it, it is striking. I like it. The National Portrait Gallery's commission of the Obamas is certainly more colorful; the two paintings complement each other in that way.
The White House's collection of portraits represent a distinct subcategory of the genre. These are much less flamboyant than some of the more creative presidential portraits. Obama's is modern, like the energy he brought to the Oval Office. It's bright. Its details are in the depiction of Obama, without any background distractions. But it does not completely abandon the genre.
The standing pose with no background recalls the White House portrait of John F. Kennedy. That portrait uses sepia tones and a vignette to portray Kennedy, who is looking down introspectively, denying the viewer eye contact. Obama's, on the other hand, has a bright, energetic white background that contrasts against his skin tone and captures the youthful, optimistic energy with which Obama inspired the nation in 2008. It also captures the gray hair he gained over his two terms. These allusions to Kennedy's portrait are apt because Obama often drew comparisons to Kennedy for his youth and style during the campaign and initial days in office.
Another allusion I see in Obama's portrait is the art that is Apple's marketing images, depicting their products that are both playful and resplendent.
Here's an example of what I mean by Apple's style of depicting products. I took this (top) screenshot from a guide for installing iCloud Photos on a PC laptop. It's funny to see Apple portray a PC in the same style of graphics that glorifies their own products. Their style is good at imbuing personality into inanimate products. Compared to their own resplendent products, note here how the laptop's edges curve downward slightly, as if it has a droopy personality, or is frowning, and compare that to the clean, tight, and friendly curves of an Apple product.
This comparison is interesting because the Obama Era in American history was also a Golden Age for Apple.
- 1997: In Illinois, Barack Obama elected to the State Senate. At Apple in California, Steve Jobs returns to the struggling company he founded and goes to work revamping the product lines. He starts to lead the company to a place of innovation and excellence. Major products include the colorful iMac desktop (1998) and, of course, the iPod (2001).
- 2004: Barack Obama attains national prominence in the summer of 2004 at the Democratic National Convention in Boston, where he gave the keynote address.
- 2007: Apple introduces the iPhone
- 2008: Barack Obama elected president
- 2010: Apple introduces the iPad
- 2011: Apple becomes the most valuable company on the planet; Steve Jobs dies
- 2012: Obama reelected
- You get the idea
The president and Apple's devices were popular in some similar ways. They were popular among the same crowds. They were both trendy for their industry, popular among people who don't normally like politics and people who don't normally like computing. (Apple and Obama never promoted each other to my knowledge. Obama was the young candidate running a tech-savvy campaign, but he was known for being inseparable from his Blackberry device, which Apple soon made irrelevant with the iPhone.) Apple Inc. and Barack Obama were the preeminent American brands of their time.
I think this portrait is fitting in ways that are less flattering but no less parts of Obama's legacy. That is, mainly, his arrogance. I think the portrait captures that. But is it really arrogance, if the foundation for it is all true? Obama had talent. He had political skills, oratorical gifts, the power to move people. He went far, fast and got where he did because of his own talents and drive. On multiple levels, it was all about Obama.
He sort of gleaned an aura of the savior or chosen one. Whether that was people projecting their fantasies on him or the product of his own self/promotion is beyond me. These dynamics bordering on the supernatural/dark arts are less desirable, if effective, political tactics. The bright, austere background makes the portrait, like an Apple shot, seem ethereal or otherworldly, if not divinely situated.
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The most lasting deficiency of his tenure, however, was his failure (or decision not) to build a movement out of the support for his campaign. He didn't really build up the national Democratic Party apparatus/grassroots organizing the way a great president might -- no less one who was formerly a community organizer. The transition from candidate to president that Obama took could be seen in his messaging. The campaign energy disappeared after the inauguration as the president and his inner circle became technocrats in the White House. Moreover, I think it took the administration (if not the president personally) a while to figure out all the levers of power. This is probably true of all administrations. E.g., Bush II failure to stop 9/11 attacks in spite of extensive executive experience in the likes of Cheney, Rumsfeld, etc.
More recent thoughts on President Obama
I have been recently thinking about how Obama's voice is missing from the national conversation right now. Things are perilous, and we need leaders. Barack Obama, love him or hate him, was a powerful leader. People followed him and came to identify with his brand of politics. My guess is that Obama is hiding from the spotlight for a couple reasons. First, he refrains from entering the political thicket out of deference to his predecessors and the sitting president. This has the benefit of raising Obama's stature insofar as he can be above the fray. The problem is that he is absent, not above the fray. Another reason may be that he's busy. Political ambition consumed his life for decades. That would require sacrificing one's pet projects. I am sure a former president has a lot of catching up to do on things that didn't make the priority list when they were actively seeking and holding high office. For example, he is probably enjoying time with his family, trite as that account of retirement may be. Another example is his writing an extremely long, two part memoir on his time in politics. He has a deal with Netflix, too. Family, hobbies, and pursuing new sources of income are enough to fill a normal person's life. Maybe Obama is relishing in that world. Maybe he is biding his time. I hope he doesn't muzzle himself for the rest of his life out of a desire not to get political.
Unfinished