The Obama Portraits

The first time I met Amy Sherald, our connection was instant. From the way she carried herself to the art she created, I knew she was the artist to paint my portrait. Tonight, we're chatting with Thelma Golden about the #ObamaPortraitsTour at @artinstitutechi. Join us at 6pm ET!

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) June 30, 2021

Happy Birthday, Breonna

Thinking of you today, Breonna. 🖤

Artwork by Amy Sherald pic.twitter.com/9KToPPG1jB

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) June 5, 2021

Happy heavenly Birthday to Breonna Taylor. She would’ve turned 28 today. It’s still #JusticeforBreonnaTaylor 💕 pic.twitter.com/gyPstN8ql5

— MEFeater Magazine (@mefeater) June 5, 2021

Keeping Breonna Alive Forever

breonna taylor by amy sherald pic.twitter.com/krqwZ35IAG

— Antwaun Sargent (@Sirsargent) August 24, 2020

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For more than 20 years, Amy Sherald has been putting the narratives of Black families and Black people to canvas. In 2016, she became the first woman and first African American to win the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition, which led to her painting Michelle Obama for the National Portrait Gallery in 2018. That oil-on-linen portrait was her first commissioned work—until Breonna Taylor. Taylor is an “American girl, she is a sister, a daughter, and a hard worker. Those are the kinds of people that I am drawn towards,” says Sherald, who is immunosuppressed and has been unable to participate in protests. She calls this portrait a contribution to the “moment and to activism—producing this image keeps Breonna alive forever.”

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breonna taylor by amy sherald pic.twitter.com/krqwZ35IAG

— Antwaun Sargent (@Sirsargent) August 24, 2020

Sherald’s process typically begins with taking a picture of her subject. Painting Taylor, a person she had never met, who would never be able to sit for her, presented a unique challenge. Sherald took extraordinary care in reimagining Taylor, inflecting her portrait with symbols of the 26-year-old’s life. Sherald found a young woman with similar physical attributes, studied Taylor’s hairstyles and fashion choices, and drew inspiration from things she learned about the young woman—that she had been a frontline worker in the battle against COVID-19; that her boyfriend had been about to propose marriage; that she was self-possessed, brave, loving, loved.

More here

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Breonna Taylor’s Boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, Holding the Engagement Ring He Was About to Propose With to Bre, Louisville, Kentucky.

Photograph by LaToya Ruby Frazier. https://t.co/tthZ7sZG97 pic.twitter.com/enctIrvpGI

— VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) August 24, 2020

Breonna Taylor’s Uncle, Aunt, Mother, Cousins And Family Friend, Tyrone Bell, Bianca Austin, Tamika Palmer, Austin Ellis, Jayden Grant And Deon Ellis Visiting The Breonna Taylor Memorial In Jefferson Square Park, Louisville, KY.https://t.co/tthZ7sZG97 pic.twitter.com/HHc64S7VNE

— VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) August 24, 2020

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Breonna Taylor’s Mother, Tamika Palmer, Draped In Bre’s Emt Jacket, Surrounded By Family and Friends: “People want to see me. They want to say they’re sorry. They want to apologize for the police."

Photograph by LaToya Ruby Frazier. https://t.co/tthZ7sZG97 pic.twitter.com/sBAv0mrn3w

— VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) August 24, 2020

Painter Amy Sherald on making Breonna Taylor's portrait: "Producing this image keeps Breonna alive forever."https://t.co/IBvKmdTRYU pic.twitter.com/qx0IfsUd5v

— VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) August 24, 2020

“Racism Is Not A Product Of Ignorance”

Racism is not a product of "ignorance." https://t.co/Ih5KLOXdUk

— G. Willow Wilson (@GWillowWilson) May 26, 2020

This is a troubling blind spot of white liberalism: the idea that smart/educated people can't be racist+ that the solution to racism is individual absolution (*I* am not like that. *I* have never said the n-word in my life. *I* voted for Barack Obama) rather than systemic change.

— G. Willow Wilson (@GWillowWilson) May 26, 2020

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I think it's tempting for us to believe we can just sort of delete the Confederacy app off our phone and be done. The idea that it's the whole operating system--that no part of our culture, even the good bits, is untouched by it--is too big to think about.

— G. Willow Wilson (@GWillowWilson) May 26, 2020

I would encourage any liberals popping in here with some variation of a No True Scotsman argument to maybe take a minute and reconsider. 🙂

— G. Willow Wilson (@GWillowWilson) May 26, 2020

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"Who do you become when you panic?" is a pretty good measure of who you really are. That instinct she had--that she could rely on the cops *even when it was she who broke the rules*--isn't something you get over in 1 afternoon of sensitivity training. That is firmware.

— G. Willow Wilson (@GWillowWilson) May 26, 2020

Anyway, this is all to say that, even if you've got a master's degree and you've read Marx in the original German and you always recycle, if you are white, you are probably running some of that firmware. You, me, all of us. It's in the background. It doesn't care how you vote.

— G. Willow Wilson (@GWillowWilson) May 26, 2020

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(As a PS, I realize none of this is new or noteworthy to people who aren't white--but the 'racism is ignorance/ignorant people are racist' was such a constant drumbeat in my childhood that it almost began to seem like you could defeat racism by maintaining a GPA of 3.6 or higher)

— G. Willow Wilson (@GWillowWilson) May 26, 2020

Queens

You Got That Right

My favorite headline EVER 😍 pic.twitter.com/s08S5u7w2r

— xannie the nanny (@AnnieMcCarren) March 20, 2018

World Leaders

This historic photo of two world leaders discussing their ideas is really inspiring pic.twitter.com/yU6MIhYWGB

— aggi (@agerenesh) March 6, 2018

An Awesome Dance Party

Parker, I'm so glad I had the chance to meet you today (and for the dance party)! Keep on dreaming big for yourself...and maybe one day I'll proudly look up at a portrait of you! pic.twitter.com/faUVTsYWun

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) March 6, 2018

They Matter. Always

The 1st image summarizes one of the reasons why the presidency of Barack Obama and the powerful presence of Michelle Obama matter to humanity, particularly to Black children. Never forget the 2nd image. Maybe it will heighten our understanding. pic.twitter.com/BkCEz3erlQ

— Be A King (@BerniceKing) March 3, 2018

‘Our Collective Imagination’

https://twitter.com/MsPackyetti/status/969716832562302976

Even when out of sight, the Obamas continue to leverage the collective imagination of the American people like no one else https://t.co/9lMuVKfF3H

— WIRED (@WIRED) March 1, 2018

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New from me: People Are Crying Over This Photo Of A Little Girl Staring At Michelle Obama's Portrait https://t.co/RMvAGdb1Qj

— David Mack (@davidmackau) March 2, 2018

I spoke to the guy who took this (instantly iconic) photo of a little girl staring at @MichelleObama's portrait: "It was so touching and uplifting for me to see this beautiful child looking at a beautiful portrait of a powerful woman." https://t.co/1PUY8Aau4K pic.twitter.com/kVpdBQERGO

— David Mack (@davidmackau) March 2, 2018

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Everyone, meet 2-year-old Parker Curry. "In the world we live in today, I'm just trying to raise a little girl who has opportunities to see women who look like her doing great things," her mom Jessica told me https://t.co/0gBu6FaHFF pic.twitter.com/FSr6Y8cTXc

— David Mack (@davidmackau) March 2, 2018