PennDesign's Ken Lum Speaks About the Obama's Official Portraits That Were Just Unveiled

In Washington D.C yesterday the official portraits of Barack and Michelle Obama were unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery. These portraits are spectacular! Why are they spectacular? Well, because even if you don't like them aesthetically they are different. They challenge the past ideological presidential portrait (think serious man sitting in a library).  Not only that, but this is the first time that the National Portrait gallery has commissioned work by African American artists. Michelle Obama's portrait was painted by Amy Sherald and Obama's portrait is by Kehinde Wiley- both amazing artists.

We were of course excited to see that Ken Lum, the Chair of PennDesign's MFA program was quoted in yesterdays article stating:

“It’s fantastic in the sense that it disrupts the very stiff uniformity of the white, middle-aged elderly man, It’s both reverential and highly irreverent at the same time.”

What an exciting moment in the art world!