Portrait-Artist-in-Chief

[Michele Rushworth]

Looks like our new President has another career waiting for him if things don't work out in the White House.

These drawings depict four senators (Senator Kennedy, Senator Reid, etc). Someone bought this at a charity auction about a year and a half ago and has since been offered over $100,000 for it. He's not selling and has put it in a safe deposit box for the time being.

[Mary Ann Archibald]

That's pretty cool.

I wonder who Obama will hire to do his official portrait?

[Richard Bingham]

Lately there has been consternation over governmental departments and their commissioning of "official portraits" from the military to the judicial and everywhere inbetween.

Seems part of the annoyance by those who style themselves "watchdogs of government waste" has to do with the practice of dispensing commissions for such work without "competetive bidding" (hah!).

I suppose I'm not the only one who reads these boards who has made the occasional effort to insert myself into that "market" . . . (without success).

It would be very instructive to hear others' experiences with "official portraiture". In the case of the presidential portrait, does the president choose the artist? I still recall Johnson's reaction to Hurd's portrait of him. I rather doubt Lyndon chose Pete . . .

[Michele Rushworth]

Maybe Obama will do his own.

Sometimes official portraits are put out to bid, sometimes not. Usually the subject of the painting chooses the artist, with considerable advance screening from staff members.