Art Institute: Virtual Conversation - Presidential Iconography

From official portraits to photographs to collages and more, depictions of a president can reveal much about a president’s individual character, the impact of their presidency, and how they have been perceived by society. Inspired by the official portraits of Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, on view this summer in The Obama Portraits (June 18–August 15), this participatory program, led by educator Annie Morse, explores the history and iconography of the American presidency.

Annie Morse is an independent art educator and curator. Formerly on staff in the Department of Learning and Public Engagement at the Art Institute of Chicago, she has also worked with the Hyde Park Art Center, Columbia College Chicago and 3Arts, among other organizations. She earned an MA in 20th-century Art History, Theory, and Criticism from the School of the Art Institute and an MA in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She currently teaches art history online for Adult Continuing Education at the School of the Art Institute and is a docent for the Newberry Library in Chicago.

We recommend using a laptop or desktop computer and downloading the latest version of Zoom to enjoy this program.

If you have any questions about virtual programming, please reach out to museum-programs@artic.edu.

For questions related to accessibility accommodations, please email access@artic.edu.