Presented by the White House Historical Association
Obama White House Portraits: The Artists
- Host
- Stewart McLaurin
- Guest
- Robert McCurdy, Painted the Official White House Portrait of President Barack Obama; Sharon Sprung, Painted the Official White House Portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama
- Date
- 9/7/22
- Duration
- 42 minutes
The White House Historical Association commissions official portraits of the president and first lady. As is the custom, President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama picked their portrait artists before leaving office. The artists’ names were kept confidential - until now. The official Obama portraits were unveiled at a White House ceremony hosted by President Joseph Biden and First Lady Jill Biden on September 7, 2022. Association President Stewart McLaurin spoke to the artists Robert McCurdy and Sharon Sprung about the challenges of this unique historical assignment, their approach to creating the portraits, and what it feels like to know your work will hang in one of the greatest galleries in the world, the White House.
Robert McCurdy painted the official White House portrait of President Barack Obama.
Sharon Sprung painted the official White House portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama.
Episodes
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White House Builder James Hoban’s Irish Roots
Featuring Laurie Grace, Chairman of the James Hoban Society of Ireland; Brother Christy O’Carroll, Congregation of Christian Brothers; Ciarán O’Connor, State Architect of Ireland; Merlo Kelly, Senior Architect, Lotts Architecture & Urbanism; Brian O’Connell, Director and Founder of O’Connell Mahon Architects and a contributor to the book James Hoban: Designer and Builder of the White House
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Obama White House Portraits: The Artists
Featuring Robert McCurdy, Painted the Official White House Portrait of President Barack Obama; Sharon Sprung, Painted the Official White House Portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama
-
American Storyteller Bartlett Sher
Featuring Bartlett Sher, Tony Award-winning Director and Resident Director at Lincoln Center Theater
-
Jackie Kennedy's White House Guidebook 60th Anniversary
Featuring Renee Braden, National Geographic Society’s Senior Director of Library and Archives; Hon. Condoleezza Rice, former U.S. Secretary of State
-
James Hoban: The Charleston Years
Featuring Shea McEnerney, historic preservationist and Next-Gen Leader
-
Incomparable Grace: JFK in the Presidency
Featuring Mark K. Updegrove, author and President and CEO of the LBJ Foundation
-
The Next Generation: What the White House Means to Me
Featuring Next-Gen Leaders: Emily Bedard, Genevieve Bellaire, Royce Dickerson, Giacomo Ferragamo, Lindsay Moynihan, Dean Vu, Sean Sandrock, Tyler Burkhardt
President of the White House Historical Association
As President of the White House Historical Association Stewart McLaurin leads the nonpartisan, nonprofit in its mission to preserve, protect, and provide access to White House history. As a lifelong student of history, Stewart is an avid reader and storyteller. His first book, White House Miscellany was published this past year and he authors a quarterly column in the White House History Journal. Drawing on his own experiences, relationships, and knowledge he provides listeners with a front row seat to history at the White House.