New Clinton portraits unveiled for National Portrait Gallery

Lacey Lewis · 04-26-2006, 02:00 PM

I am not sure how to link to a video on CNN.com, but this morning I saw a video clip that was picking on Bill Clinton's portrait quite a bit, and also highlighted Hillary Clinton's portrait.

Anyone else see if or interested in linking to it here?

Lacey Lewis · 04-26-2006, 02:06 PM

Let's see if this works:

LINK

Garth Herrick · 04-26-2006, 02:49 PM

Thanks Lacey, great link! Yikes....

I guess we better be extra careful to avoid insinuating poses when we paint presidents; not that this portrait actually has such a problem, but evidently people will read the most marvelous insights into portraits and poses, warranted or not.

I guess we all need a degree in popular body language studies.

Garth

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lacey Lewis

Let's see if this works:

LINK

Tom Edgerton · 04-27-2006, 08:23 AM

I don't believe that Simmie Knox was named initially when the Clinton White House portraits were unveiled. Print media picked it up, but the nightly news pieces didn't name the artist then, either. I guess the paintings just spontaneously generate themselves. Immaculate conception.

Sharon Knettell · 04-27-2006, 10:01 AM

I don't know, I think Shanks caught our most famous lounge lizard in just the right pose. I always thought, as well as dear Diana, that he was quite dishy. So did the women of the press corps. This revelation just drove my husband nuts!

I do hope that if I were ever to get a presidential commission that it would be the president of Namibia or some such country because a loud and garish costume with a feather or two wouldn't be considered too outre.

Kimberly Dow · 04-27-2006, 11:22 AM

You have to wonder about people's reactions to the pose. I watched some of those clips - and I just dont get it. He is just standing there. It is more casual than some, but suggestive? Nutty.

At first I cringed on behalf of Shanks and some of the unkindly remarks, but I suppose what they say is true - its all publicity.

Sharon Knettell · 04-27-2006, 11:44 AM

Suggestive? Hardly, but I suppose those untalented twits have to find something sexy or an original bon mot (In their mini minds) to say to sell newspapers. The fact that they let their unfiltered thoughts run from their computers like Montezuma's revenge to a fitting receptacle, whose end use is either a trash liner or fish wrapper is somehow poetic justice of a kind.

Carol Norton · 04-27-2006, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sharon Knettell

Suggestive? Hardly, but I suppose those untalented twits have to find something sexy or an original bon mot (In their mini minds) to say to sell newspapers. The fact that they let their unfiltered thoughts run from their computers like Montezuma's revenge to a fitting receptacle, whose end use is either a trash liner or fish wrapper is somehow poetic justice of a kind.

I was just about to comment on Kim's remarks but Sharon said it far more eloquently that I would have. "UNFILTERED THOUGHTS" is the perfect phrase. I strongly suspect that ANY pose other than that early American famous painting of the couple in front of their barn with pitchfork in hand - face squared to the audience and grimly set mouth would have evoked the same remark. Had the former president not had several well-publicized adventures, the image probably wouldn't have been projected onto the portrait. I even suspect that if the press hadn't seen the portrait, the remarks would have been written the same.

John Reidy · 04-27-2006, 05:17 PM

To add to the silly comments, last night it was reported that Bill's wedding band was absent from his left hand and quoted Shanks as saying he felt it wasn't important.

I was glad that at least the artists name was mentioned but wouldn't you know it was only in relationship to the wedding band.

News mediums are like great dragons that need to be fed 24 hours a day. Quantity not quality.

Sharon Knettell · 04-27-2006, 06:36 PM

This is off the track of this portrait, but it is a presidential reference.

A schoolmate of mine, a Yalie, and a member of the Yale club has already done the big Texan (Bush) for the aforementioned club. Hmmm---I wonder who will get THAT presidential commission?

By the bye, the Biggie Texan is really a Yankee. His grandfather was Prescott Bush, a former governor of Connecticut. I have related this to some Texans I know and they refuse to believe me.