Presidential portraits

Portraits of the former president of the United States George W. Bush and first lady Laura Bush were painted by the American portrait artist John Howard Sanden in and respectively. The paintings were unveiled in in a ceremony at the White House where they presently hang.

George w bush presidential portrait

Sanden was chosen as the artist after he was mentioned to the Bushes by the Dallas socialites Harold and Annette Simmons at a dinner at the Simmons home. An aide to George W. Bush invited Sanden to Dallas, where the former President greeted Sanden in a bathrobe as he was not sure what to wear. A gray suit was eventually chosen.

Hartzog, Jr. White House Acquisition Trust. Sanden felt that the hardest part of the portrait was avoiding any appearance of George W. Bush smirking , saying in an interview for American Artist magazine that "The smirk shows up when he doesn't want it, and he tends to mug for the camera, as though he can't help it". I'd paint the mouth, wipe it off, paint it again, let it set for a couple of days, then decide, 'No, that isn't right either".

Bush himself told Anderson that he had frustration with the appearance of his mouth. In his portrait George W. Bush is depicted in the Oval Office , standing in the center of the room.