{"id":8888,"date":"2025-07-26T00:00:42","date_gmt":"2025-07-26T00:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/michelle-obama-portraitists-exhibit-with-trans-statue-of-liberty-pulled-after-pressure-from-vance\/"},"modified":"2025-07-26T00:00:42","modified_gmt":"2025-07-26T00:00:42","slug":"michelle-obama-portraitists-exhibit-with-trans-statue-of-liberty-pulled-after-pressure-from-vance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.euro-tv.ro\/news\/michelle-obama-portraitists-exhibit-with-trans-statue-of-liberty-pulled-after-pressure-from-vance\/","title":{"rendered":"Michelle Obama portraitist’s exhibit with trans Statue of Liberty pulled after pressure from Vance"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

EXCLUSIVE: <\/strong>Artist Amy Sherald canceled her upcoming exhibit featuring a portrait of a transgender Statue of Liberty at the Smithsonian\u2019s National Portrait Gallery after Vice President JD Vance<\/a> raised concerns the show included woke and divisive content, Fox News Digital has learned.\u00a0<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump<\/a> signed an executive order in March that placed Vance in charge of overseeing the removal of programs or exhibits at Smithsonian museums that “degrade shared American values, divide Americans based on race, or promote programs or ideologies inconsistent with Federal law and policy.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Vance said Sherald\u2019s “American Sublime” exhibit<\/a> violated Trump\u2019s executive order and was an example of woke and divisive content during a meeting June 9 with the Board of Regents, a source familiar with the meeting told Fox News Digital.\u00a0<\/p>\n

ARTIST PULLS ART FROM SMITHSONIAN GALLERY AFTER MUSEUM TRIES TO ALTER HER TRANS STATUE OF LIBERTY PAINTING<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“Vice President Vance has been leading the effort to eliminate woke indoctrination from our beloved Smithsonian museums,” an administration official said in an email to Fox News Digital. “On top of shepherding the One Big Beautiful Bill through the Senate and helping President Trump navigate international crises, the vice president has demonstrated his ability to get President Trump\u2019s priorities across the finish line.”<\/p>\n

Sherald, best known for painting former first lady Michelle Obama\u2019s official portrait in 2018, announced Thursday she was pulling her show, “American Sublime,” from the Smithsonian\u2019s National Portrait Gallery slated for September, The New York Times first reported.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sherald said she was rescinding her work from the exhibition after being told that the National Portrait Gallery had some concerns about featuring the portrait of the transgender Statue of Liberty during the show. The painting, “Trans Forming Liberty,” depicts a trans woman with pink hair wearing a blue gown.\u00a0<\/p>\n

TRUMP WHITE HOUSE CALLS OUT SMITHSONIAN FOR PUSHING ‘ONE-SIDED, DIVISIVE POLITICAL NARRATIVES<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“These concerns led to discussions about removing the work from the exhibition,” Sherald said in a statement, The New York Times first reported Thursday. “While no single person is to blame, it\u2019s clear that institutional fear shaped by a broader climate of political hostility toward trans lives played a role.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“This painting exists to hold space for someone whose humanity has been politicized and disregarded. I cannot in good conscience comply with a culture of censorship, especially when it targets vulnerable communities.<\/p>\n

“At a time when transgender people are being legislated against, silenced and endangered across our nation, silence is not an option,” Sherald added. “I stand by my work. I stand by my sitters. I stand by the truth that all people deserve to be seen \u2014 not only in life, but in art.”<\/p>\n

The Smithsonian did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding Vance\u2019s involvement in the matter.\u00a0<\/p>\n

DEFUNDING DEI: HERE\u2019S HOW THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HAS UNDONE BIDEN\u2019S VERY PRIZED PROGRAMS<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

The White House said the removal of Sherald\u2019s exhibit is a “principled and necessary step” toward cultivating unity at institutions like the Smithsonian.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“The \u2018Trans Forming Liberty\u2019 painting, which sought to reinterpret one of our nation\u2019s most sacred symbols through a divisive and ideological lens, fundamentally strayed from the mission and spirit of our national museums,” Trump special assistant Lindsey Halligan said in a statement to Fox News Digital.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“The Statue of Liberty is not an abstract canvas for political expression. It is a revered and solemn symbol of freedom, inspiration and national unity that defines the American spirit.”<\/p>\n

Other members of the Smithsonian\u2019s Board of Regents include the Chief Justice of the United States, John Roberts, along with senators John Boozman, R-Ark.; Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.; and Gary Peters, D-Mich., along with several other House members.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fox News\u2019 Gabriel Hays contributed to this report.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

– FOX NEWS<\/p>\n

This article appeared on the website foxnews.com
\nThis article is taken based on Law no. 8\/1996 of Romania. News does not enjoy copyright, so they can be taken, this is our right to take news and information in its entirety and distribute them further. The content was made available to us through the rss mechanism
\nOriginal Content<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EXCLUSIVE: Artist Amy Sherald canceled her upcoming exhibit featuring a portrait of a transgender Statue of Liberty at the Smithsonian\u2019s National Portrait Gallery after Vice President JD Vance raised concerns the show included woke and divisive content, Fox News Digital has learned.\u00a0 President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March that placed Vance in […]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1150,1],"tags":[579,8126,746,8127,8124,722,43,8125,3939,7276,2451,1533,1353,320],"class_list":["post-8888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fox-news","category-news","tag-after","tag-exhibit","tag-from","tag-liberty","tag-michelle","tag-obama","tag-of","tag-portraitists","tag-pressure","tag-pulled","tag-statue","tag-trans","tag-vance","tag-with"],"yoast_head":"\nMichelle Obama portraitist's exhibit with trans Statue of Liberty pulled after pressure from Vance - 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