Where: National Portrait Gallery
When: closing March 25, 2018 (Billy Graham), November 4, 2018 (Michelle Obama), and in 2028 (Barack Obama)
I've had more lunch plans than I can manage lately, so museum visits have taken a back seat. I know, I know, it's really hard to be popular. I did manage to get over to the Portrait Gallery before a Smithsonian Associates program this week, and saw the portraits of Billy Graham, Michelle Obama and Barack Obama.
Billy Graham's portrait was unsurprising - it's a pretty standard, formal picture. Nothing really intriguing or interesting about it, frankly. Ho hum.
Michelle Obama's portrait (right across the hallway from Graham) was garnering a lot of attention, but I didn't need to wait in line to see it. I liked it; it's both celebratory and serious. I'll say her skin tone looked more gray than brown, but perhaps that was a trick of the lighting or the effect of the blue background. When the hubbub has died down, I'll have a closer look. It's in the "Recent Acquisitions" section.
Barack Obama's portrait was also very crowded, although I was able to look at that without standing in line either. I liked it as well; it's different than the other Presidential portraits, and after a while, you can only look at so many stodgy old pictures. I'll be back to see this again too.
Verdict: Unless you're a big Billy Graham fan, you can skip his portrait, and you've got plenty of time to see the Obamas.
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