It's not every day that horticulture is represented in an Official Presidential Portrait. In fact, the recently unveiled portrait of President Barack Obama may be the first ever. The artist, Kehinde Wiley, raised in South Central LA, created a stunning likeness of the former President which now hangs boldly in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.
Mr. Wiley chose to set the President's likeness against, what Holland Cotter, the New York Times Art Critic describes as, “embedding him in a bower of what looks like ground cover. From the greenery sprout flowers that have symbolic meaning for President Obama.”
Amongst the vine-like greenery are three distinct floral examples. The first are African blue lilies which represent Kenya, his father's birthplace. We know them as Agapanthus africanus, or Lily of the Nile. The genus Agapanthus contains 10 species. They were originally native to the Cape of Good Hope region of South Africa. We here in Solano County are most fortunate to have many gardens filled with their glorious blooms and exquisite, leathery leaves. The name is from the Greek: Aga meaning love and Antho meaning flower—or—Flower of Love.
The second flower that Wiley included is Jasmine which the artist has included to represent Hawaii, where the President was born. Jasmine is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family—Oleaceae. There are about 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions originally of Eurasia, Australasia and Oceana. We here in Solano County can also enjoy their brilliant fragrance for a good part of the year. The name “Jasmine” comes from the Persian word, “Yasmin” meaning Flower of God.
The final flower is Chrysanthemum and is the official flower of Chicago. This is a delightful reference to the city where Mr. Obama's political career began and where he met his wife, Michelle. We often call it a mum and it is from the Asteraceae family and the genus is easy to remember—because it's Chrysanthemum! They are native to Asia and Northeastern Europe and there are literally countless varieties and cultivars. They derive their name from the Greek: Chysos meaning gold and Anthemon meaning flower—or Golden Flower.
Surrounding President Obama in a symbolic floral bower was a brilliant artistic choice—one that is sure to intrigue viewers for years and years to come. And, now that we have an idea of why these three flowers were selected by the artist, it's fun to have a little “Where's Waldo” treasure hunt moment and see if we can search out all of the blooms. Happy hunting!