By Andrea Shalal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Sharon Sprung, the Brooklyn artist who painted the iconic official portrait of former first lady Michelle Obama, has a new powerful female subject: U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.
Yellen, 78, met with Sprung at the Treasury Department shortly after the Nov. 5 presidential election, to discuss the portrait and test lighting and poses, the artist said. She left with a snippet of Yellen’s silver hair to get the color just right.
Once completed in August, the portrait of Yellen, the first woman to head the Treasury, will be displayed on the third floor of the historic Treasury building, alongside those of her male predecessors, starting with Alexander Hamilton.
Sprung, who also painted Representative Patsy Mink of Hawaii, the first woman of color and first Asian-American woman elected to Congress, told Reuters her goal was to capture the essence of her subjects – many of whom have made history.
“It’s an honor. It’s scary and it’s an obligation. I want to make them as strong as the male portraits,” Sprung said, noting she had long respected and admired Yellen, a fellow Brooklynite.
“She’s pretty cool. I was always very attracted to who she was and how she held herself, and the fact that she’s a woman in a very male atmosphere,” she said. “I’m very impressed with her courage. She sort of glows smart.”
Rhea Combs, director of curatorial affairs at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, said the portrait would help expand Americans’ understanding of their history.
“The history of portraiture favored men of privilege – from the sitters to the artists – so it is a true pleasure to see more women and artists of color working in the field to expand portraiture’s role in diversifying the visual narrative of the nation,” she said. “Sharon Sprung is a talented artist and a great choice to depict a woman as accomplished as Secretary Janet Yellen.”
The first woman to head the Treasury and the Federal Reserve, Yellen is also the only person to lead all three top economic institutions in the United States – Treasury, the Fed and the White House Council of Economic Advisers.
She reflected on her career during an event honoring her lifetime of service at Treasury on Friday, saying she had come to see “economics not just as a fascinating intellectual pursuit but as a powerful tool to uplift lives and create opportunity.”
She said she never envisioned heading Treasury, but embraced the role and “the ride” wholeheartedly. She plans to do more writing after leaving office, likely returning to the Brookings Institution where she worked after leaving the Fed.
The official portrait will add a certain icing on the cake.
“Sharon is such a talented artist and I’m confident she’ll do a great job. I’m looking forward to seeing it when it’s finished,” Yellen said.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal, Editing by Nick Zieminski)
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