Organized by the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, the Obama Portraits will travel across the U.S. from June 2021 through October 2022, reaching millions of people who might not otherwise have an opportunity to view these remarkable paintings.
The much anticipated portraits will be arriving at The Brooklyn Museum of Art this August as part of a five-city tour throughout the United States, beginning the tour appropriately enough, at The Art Institute of Chicago, the location of ‘Barack & Michelle’s’ first date!
In addition to the artworks themselves, The Obama Portraits Tour will feature audio-visual elements, educational workshops, and curatorial presentations. To coincide with the tour, The Obama Portraits Tour is accompanied by a richly illustrated book published by National Portrait Gallery and Princeton University Press ~ with Princeton University Press donating copies of The Obama Portraits to schools and school libraries in underserved communities neighboring all seven tour stops.
Before President Obama departed from office, he and Mrs. Obama selected Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald to paint their portraits for the Gallery’s collection. These portraits were commissioned by The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, and were unveiled and installed in February, 2018 in a private ceremony as part of the Portrait Gallery’s 50th anniversary celebrations.
The Obama Portraits will be on view from August 27 to October 24, 2021 at The Brooklyn Museum of Art, located in the Morris A. and Meyer Schapiro Wing on the 4th floor, 200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, NY.
The five-city tour locations and dates are:
- The Art Institute of Chicago; Chicago—June 18, 2021–Aug. 15, 2021
- Brooklyn Museum; Brooklyn, New York—Aug. 27, 2021–Oct. 24, 2021
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Los Angeles—Nov. 7, 2021–Jan. 2, 2022
- High Museum of Art; Atlanta—Jan. 14, 2022–March 13, 2022
- The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Houston—March 27, 2022–May 30, 2022
Update February 2022:
The Obama Portraits Tour extended to include two more cities. The de Young Museum in San Francisco from June 18 through August 14, 2022 ~ and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston from September 3 to through October 30, 2022. The paintings will return on view in Washington D.C.
The Obama Portraits Tour has been organized by the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C.
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