Artist Amy Sherald is canceling an upcoming show of her work at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery. Sherald's boldly colored portraits documenting the African American experience have graced magazine covers.
She is best known for her painting of Michelle Obama commissioned by the museum.
Amy Sherald: American Sublime was scheduled to be on view at the National Portrait Gallery for five months beginning Sept. 19. Described as "the largest, most comprehensive exhibition of the artist's work to date," the exhibition was organized by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, or SFMOMA, and is currently at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York.
Sherald is canceling the show because of a dispute over her painting of a trans woman with pink hair and a blue gown holding a torch, called Trans Forming Liberty, 2024.
Sherald said in a statement that she was told the National Portrait Gallery had concerns about including that portrait in the exhibition.
"These concerns led to discussions about removing the work from the exhibition. While no single person is to blame, it's clear that institutional fear shaped by a broader climate of political hostility toward trans lives played a role," the statement said.
Sherald told The New York Times, which first reported this story, that the Smithsonian planned to replace the work with a video of people reacting to the painting.
"The video would have opened up for debate the value of trans visibility and I was opposed to that being a part of the 'American Sublime' narrative," she told the Times.
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A spokeswoman for the Smithsonian, Linda St. Thomas, told NPR the video was to be "added" to the show to give the artwork context, not to replace the painting. St. Thomas said the Smithsonian is "disappointed" the show has been cancelled and remains "appreciative and inspired" by Sherald and her artwork.
Sherald has a long relationship with the Smithsonian. In 2016, she won the National Portrait Gallery's 2016 Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition. Her 2018 portrait of former first lady Michelle Obama was commissioned by the Portrait Gallery for its collection. With American Sublime, Sherald would have been the first contemporary Black artist to receive a solo exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery.
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Like other cultural organizations that receive federal funds, the Smithsonian has taken blows from the White House. In May, President Trump tried to fire Kim Sajet, the National Portrait Gallery's director, for being supportive of diversity, equity and inclusion. In June, the Smithsonian's Board of Regents issued a statement that said the federally funded institution should be "free from political or partisan influence" and that personnel decisions were the responsibility of the secretary of the Smithsonian. Sajet resigned two weeks later on her own.
Jennifer Vanasco edited this story for digital and broadcast.
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