Donald Trump demands ‘bad painting’ of him hung in President’s Gallery at Colorado Capitol be taken down
A portrait of Donald Trump has sparked controversy in the White House, with the United States President demanding it be taken down and adding a state Governor should “be ashamed”.
The portrait, painted by artist Sarah Boardman, is hung in the President’s Gallery of the Colorado Capitol.
“Nobody likes a bad picture or painting of themselves, but the one in Colorado, in the State Capitol, put up by the Governor, along with all other Presidents, was purposefully distorted to a level that even I, perhaps, have never seen before,” Mr Trump wrote on X.
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“The artist also did President Obama, and he looks wonderful, but the one on me is truly the worst.
“She must have lost her talent as she got older.
“In any event, I would much prefer not having a picture than having this one.”
The president said he was speaking out for the “people from Colorado”, claiming they had “called and written” to complain.
“In fact, they are actually angry about it!” Mr Trump said.
Mr Trump said he is speaking with “radical left” Colorado Governor Jared Polis to have the portrait taken down.
“I am speaking on their (Coloradans’) behalf to the Radical Left Governor, Jared Polis, who is extremely weak on crime, in particular with respect to Tren de Aragua, which practically took over Aurora (don’t worry, we saved it!), to take it down.” Mr Trump wrote.
“Jared should be ashamed of himself!”
The painting, hung in 2019, has a unique history.
Presidential paintings in the US are not taxpayer-funded. Instead, they are paid for using donations.
In Colorado, the group Colorado Citizens for Culture were responsible for donations and commissioning of presidential paintings, but in 2018, around three years after Mr Trump first took office, they announced no one had offered up funds for an artwork.
It took a Democrat prankster to get the ball rolling on the creation of the portrait Mr Trump hates.
In 2018, Democratic House staffer Katie March hung a picture of Russian President Vladimir Putin in Mr Trump’s empty space in the gallery.
Her Putin-prank made global headlines, even in Russia.
Those headlines fuelled efforts by Republicans to crowdfund for a portrait of then-first-term President Trump.
The $10,000 needed for its commissioning was raised and Sarah Boardman, the artist who painted former President Barack Obama’s portrait hung in the Colorado Capitol, was put to work.
Almost seven months after Mr Trump was sent packing from the White House, after former President Joe Biden took office, his presidential painting was finally hung.
Mr Trump has not previously spoken out about the painting.
