The Obama Foundation has introduced the first official portrait featuring Barack Obama and Michelle Obama together, created by Nigerian-born, Los Angeles-based artist Njideka Akunyili Crosby.
Titled The Obamas: Springing Forth (2026), the large-scale work uses Akunyili Crosby's layered photo-transfer style to blend portraiture with memory, symbolism, and personal history. The painting will be displayed in the lobby of the Barack Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, alongside new commissions by other contemporary artists.
The composition places Michelle seated in front of Barack, while subtle visual details reference the couple's shared journey. These include Michelle Obama's Chicago roots, a bust of Martin Luther King Jr. associated with the Oval Office years, and faded images that suggest intimacy and continuity. The artwork also weaves in meaningful plants such as okra and coral hibiscus, along with nods to the couple's audiobook Grammy wins and the 1963 March on Washington.
Michelle Obama described the piece as capturing "all the stories within the story," while the artist said she wanted viewers to feel a sense of familiarity and connection. The Barack Obama Presidential Center is set to open to the public this Friday, aligning with Juneteenth.
As public art continues to merge memory, identity, and place, projects like this may shape how future cultural spaces tell shared stories.