Obama Portraits Tour coming to Atlanta

Atlanta, a city with a rich Black history as well as love and appreciation for an impact black art scene, is one of several stops for the Obama Portraits Tour. 

The National Portrait Gallery’s striking official portraits of President Barack Obama by Kehinde Wiley and First Lady Michelle Obama by Amy Sherald were unveiled at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in February 2018. The Atlanta High Museum of Art is the fourth stop on a five-city tour of the paintings.  The portraits will be on display at the High Museum from January 14th thru March 20th. 

With a price point at $16.50, the demand for the tickets is expected to be high. The iconic portraits of former President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama have received unprecedented responses from the public. 

Organized by the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, The Obama Portraits Tour is expected to reach millions of people who might not otherwise have an opportunity to view these remarkable paintings. In addition to the portraits, the tour will include an audio-visual element,  educational workshops, and curatorial presentations. 

The five-city tour that began in 2021 included: 

• Art Institute of Chicago; Chicago—June 18, 2021–Aug. 15, 2021
• Brooklyn Museum; Brooklyn, New York—Aug. 27, 2021–Oct. 24, 2021
• Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Los Angeles—Nov. 7, 2021–Jan. 2, 2022
• High Museum of Art; Atlanta—Jan. 14, 2022–March 20, 2022
• The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Houston—April 3, 2022–May 30, 2022

In addition to the tour, the High Museum is offering a seminar entitled Teaching about the Obama Portraits. In this teacher seminar, museum educators from the National Portrait Gallery and the High Museum of Art will explore the power of portraiture in the portraits of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.

With a special focus on Georgia artist Amy Sherald, the seminar will look at artistic technique, the use of symbolism, and a dash of history to connect the portraits to the visual arts, social studies, and humanities classrooms. 

The teacher seminar is free and will be offered on Jan. 3 and again on Feb. 5. Contact the High Museum for more details. https://high.org/exhibition/the-obama-portraits-tour/

High Museum of Art, 1280 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 404-733-4400, high.org)