SEE ALSO: https://tweedlandthegentlemansclub.blogspot.com/2017/02/jackie-fim-stephane-boudin-jacqueline.html
A First Look at President Joe Biden’s Oval Office
The
newly-inaugurated president pays tribute to numerous historical figures through
his office decor.
BY MARY
ELIZABETH ANDRIOTIS
JAN 21,
2021
On January
20th, Joe Biden became the 46th President of the United States—and given that
he wasted no time carrying out his presidential duties on Inauguration Day, it
should come as no surprise that he already has a newly-redecorated Oval Office
as his workspace. While the inauguration was underway, this historic room (and
the rest of the White House) was treated to a makeover, with many furnishings
being removed and replaced to suit the president’s vision for his new backdrop.
After all, if there’s one thing many of us have learned from spending more time
at home during the pandemic, it’s the importance of truly making a room your
own.
The most
noticeable—and telling—amendment made to the Oval Office at President Biden’s
request is the plethora of artwork that pays tribute to those who came before
him. This includes portraits of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, George Washington,
Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton,
and busts of Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr., Daniel
Webster, Cesar Chavez, and Robert F. Kennedy. This decorating choice reflects
Biden’s admiration for and willingness to learn from history—after all, he
double majored in history and political science as an undergraduate student at
the University of Delaware.
Of course,
President Biden is not one to make choices solely based on aesthetics, so it’s
hardly out of scope to presume that his artwork selections have a deeper
meaning. Hanging above the Resolute desk (which has now been used by eight
presidents in total, beginning with John F. Kennedy, and more recently used by
Barack Obama and Donald Trump) is a portrait of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
Similar to President Biden’s plans to help the U.S. overcome a difficult time
in history due to the COVID-19 pandemic, FDR led this country amidst the Great
Depression and World War II. In the same vein, the painting of Benjamin
Franklin is said to illustrate Biden’s belief in the importance of science,
something that is especially paramount in the age of a pandemic.
A Trump-era
portrait that has since been removed was one of President Andrew Jackson, who
was a proponent of slavery (and an owner of enslaved people himself). Jackson
also signed the Indian Removal Act, which forced over 46,000 Native Americans
out of their homeland. This choice of artwork came under scrutiny following a
November 2017 event in which then-President Trump honored Navajo Code Talkers
who served in World War II, with this portrait on the wall right behind them.
It should
also be noted that the close proximity of the portraits of political rivals
Jefferson and Hamilton in President Biden’s Oval Office was no accident—this
was meant to emphasize the urgency of overcoming political differences in times
of strife.
Suffice it
to say, it seems like Biden is looking to the furnishings of his new Oval
Office as a source of inspiration in challenging moments, and as a way to honor
both his predecessors and other notable American figures.
Beyond (or
rather, just below) the artwork of Biden’s Oval Office is a piece of decor that
is noticeably more vibrant than its predecessor: a rich royal blue rug that was
last seen in this room during the Clinton administration. This decor decision
is a stark contrast from the Trump-era Oval Office, which had a predominantly
neutral color palette, mainly made up of beige and other muted hues. It’s
possible that this rug was chosen, at least in part, because blue is the color
that is most often associated with the Democratic Party. There are now just
four remnants from the Trump Oval Office: a gray damask wallpaper selected by
Trump himself, the Resolute desk, gold drapes that were first used by Bill
Clinton, and a pair of cream, patterned couches, which were originally part of
George W. Bush’s Oval Office.
Given that
President Biden only just moved into the White House yesterday—and the move-in
process had to take place in under five hours—it is likely that more decor
changes will soon be made to the Oval Office and other rooms in the People’s
House. We'll keep you posted!
What does Joe Biden's Oval Office makeover reveal
about the new US president?
Thursday 21
January 2021, 10:45pm
New
presidents usually redecorate the historic room to reflect their own tastes as
well as the type of leader they want to be - or at least want to be seen as
being.
Some of the
changes are purely cosmetic, such as different rugs (a dark blue one replaces
Donald Trump's choice), curtains and wallpaper.
But the
makeover of the US president's formal working space in the West Wing of the
White House is far more than just aesthetic - Mr Biden's touches are a signal
to world of the man he is - and serve to distance him further from Mr Trump.
The Winston
Churchill bust brought back in by Mr Trump after it was removed by Barack Obama
(a move which prompted the then foreign secretary Boris Johnson to accuse the
44th president of an "ancestral dislike of the British Empire"), has
once again been put back in storage.
Instead, Mr
Biden has chosen busts of iconic civil rights leaders, founding fathers and
former presidents.
Alongside
these leading figures from history that have shaped America, Mr Biden - who as
former vice president to Mr Obama knows this room well - has added personal
touches, including a table adorned with family photos.
The family
photos
Nested
among the portraits is a bust of Latin American civil and labour rights leader
Cesar Chavez.
The busts
A rock from
the Moon sits on a shelf in the office. It is not clear how Joe Biden came
across this bit of the Moon, but - as the first nation to reach the Moon - this
lump of rock is a symbol of America's power, ambition and endeavours.
The desk
The
portraits
It has been
replaced with Benjamin Franklin, that, according to the Washington Post, is
intended to signal the 46th President's interest in science (something that Mr
Trump was not well know for).
There now
also hangs a portrait of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and paintings of founding
fathers Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton hanging side by side; the pair
had very different ideologies and frequently disagreed, but still forged a
partnership.
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