Barack Obama and Michelle Obama unveil official portraits at the White House

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Barack and Michelle Obama at the ceremony

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EVELYN HOCKSTEIN / REUTERS

They looked impressed: Michelle and Barack Obama unveiled their new official portraits in the White House.

The former US President and former First Lady came at the invitation of the current incumbent, Joe Biden, who was Vice President of the United States under Obama from 2009 to 2017.

"You will be considered one of the most important presidents in history, along with one of the most important first ladies," Biden said in recognition of the two - to the applause of numerous invited guests.

Barack Obama's portrait, painted by Robert McCurdy, shows the now 61-year-old photo-realistically in a dark suit and gray tie in front of a light background.

»What I love about Robert's work is that he paints people exactly as they are.

For better or for worse,” Obama joked about his portrait, making his audience laugh.

“It catches every line in your face, every line in your shirt.

You will notice that he refused to hide my gray hair.

And refused my request to make my ears smaller."

McCurdy made the painting based on photos he took of Obama.

According to the White House, he spends more than a year on each hyper-realistic work that aims for absolute neutrality.

McCurdy painted Nelson Mandela, the Dalai Lama and Muhammad Ali, among others.

Obama wanted to paint artists anyway

Painting Obama was McCurdy's plan before he was invited: "Obama was on the list of people we would have invited anyway," McCurdy said, according to the White House Historical Association's People magazine.

"When this project came up, it was just perfect because it saved us the trouble of having to ask him."

Michelle Obama was portrayed by painter Sharon Sprung in a classic pose, seated on a red sofa, wearing a light blue dress.

"I'm thrilled that this extraordinary work will forever be enshrined as part of our nation's history," Obama commented, noting that New York native Sprung was one of the small circle of painters who created a portrait for the White House .

These aren't the first pictures of the Obamas: Portraits of the pair were unveiled at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery in Washington in 2018, and they've since become a tourist magnet.

The couple had lived in the White House with their daughters Sasha and Malia for eight years before Obama left office more than five years ago.

Trump did not hold a ceremony for the Obamas

The hallways and bedrooms of the White House are filled with large, formal portraits of ex-Presidents and First Ladies.

It's traditional for former US presidents to unveil their official portraits in the White House during the tenure of their successors - so actually his Republican successor Donald Trump should have invited the Obamas.

But Trump's administration broke with tradition and did not invite the Obamas to a ceremony.

White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin said there is no set process for presidential portraits.

"It's really up to the current President in the White House and the former President pictured in the portrait to determine the right timing, but there's no set timetable," he said.

Instead, Biden caught up on what Trump had suspended – and rekindled the public “bromance” between the two men: “Nothing could have prepared me better for the office of President of the United States than being by your side for eight years,” said Biden addressed to Obama.

In return, Obama thanked Biden for his work.

"Thanks to your grace and strength, perhaps most importantly your belief in our democracy and the American people, this country is better off than it was when you took office, and for that we should all be deeply grateful," Obama said.

He also thanked his former staffers, many of whom now work with Biden at the White House and were present at the ceremony in the East Room.

At the same time, Obama joked that none of them had ever named their child "Barack."

kko/Reuters/dpa