Bostonians will have a chance to see the super popular Obama portraits soon…
The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery recently announced that the portraits will be extending its multi-city tour this year, and will now be on display at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston from September 3 through October 30, 2022!
Kehinde Wiley painted the oil-on-canvas portrait of President Obama, while Amy Sherald painted the oil-on-linen portrait of the former First Lady. They were unveiled in February of 2018 at the National Portrait Gallery and have been met with immense acclaim ever since. The museum has even seen a record number of visitors the last two years the portraits have been on display. So now, they’re spreading the love!
Besides just the artwork being on view to the public, the art exhibit will have audio-visual elements as well as teacher workshops, curatorial presentations, and an accompanying illustrated book called The Obama Portraits, according to the museum’s announcement.
Our own Museum of Fine Arts will be the last stop on the eight-city tour, after San Francisco. The upcoming schedule includes:
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- High Art Museum, Atlanta—on view through March 20
- The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston—April 2–May 30
- de Young Museum, San Francisco—June 18–Aug. 14
- Museum of Fine Arts, Boston—Sept. 3–Oct. 30
“The very presentation of ‘The Obama Portraits Tour’ and the collaboration of eight premier institutions—the Portrait Gallery included—amidst a global pandemic speaks to the power of portraiture to bring audiences together,” said Kim Sajet, the director of the National Portrait Gallery. “We look forward to further engaging West Coast audiences with the tour’s presentation at the de Young Museum, and exploring these contemporary paintings in the context of Boston’s longstanding tradition of portraiture during their time at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.”
Find out more on the National Portrait Gallery’s website.