Portraits 1

I'm calling this post #1 because I have a feeling this whole portrait thing could get even more interesting as time goes by, and it could turn into a series here. People are just now starting to critique these portraits. I just saw a couple of videos about it and they were really funny. Most of the other thumbnails I saw about this seemed to take a more serious tone; from the titles anyway.
 I haven't even scratched the surface on what people have to say about this, but I did watch part of one vid where dude was going into all the alleged numerology associated with the paintings. Everything is open to interpretation of course, but it was interesting. The number of memes should go up exponentially for a while, and I'm sure some of those will be entertaining. I already saw one with Barack's portrait showing a 'shopped-in clip of Homer Simpson disappearing into cartoon ivy alongside the former prez. Not bad but I'm sure it can be topped. It's been compared to the ivy-covered outfield wall at Wrigley Field.That's excellent. Someone said it looked like he was being eaten by the plants, like something out of "Little Shop of Horrors." That's excellent too.
 I haven't started my own investigation yet. Michelle's portrait is fairly cut-and-dried and there's no background, so I'll probably study the Barack image mostly. I'll probably take a different approach to most people. I'm well-trained in pattern-recognition and such and my sense of pareidolia is off the charts; plus I was okay at "hidden pictures" as a kid, so I'll probably look for subliminal shit. I bet I'll find some. People are already saying they see a pot leaf painted in but it didn't look like that to me. That's too easy. I think Obama might have had a little of the pot leaf right before he decided to have Kehinde Wiley paint his portrait, but that's another story.
 I really don't have much to think about Michelle's portrait except that if I were to grade it in an art class I'd be hard-pressed to give it more than about a B- at best. Even with the odd break with tradition for Barack's painting and all the possible shit going on, at least it has style, and it looks like the dude. I doubt I could pick this painting out of a lineup as being Michelle Obama. It looks like the artist threw a little Beyonce (Bounce, as I call her) into the mix just for funsies. Other than that I can kinda see a little of Michelle in there, but somehow something seems off. I think that's just due to the quality of the painting being what I'd call sub-par. Hate to say but it looks more feminine than Michelle in real life. Look at Obama looking at it. He's either going "Who the fuck is SHE supposed to be?" or "Yeah, I'd hit that."
 The style (or lack of) of her painting reminds me of something I can't put my finger on yet. It's a bit like when you and your honey go to Florida for Spring Break and you go to one of those t-shirt shops and get each other's names airbrushed onto your shirts, with ocean and palm trees and such. They put in the little four-pointed stars like it's supposed to be a chrome bumper or something, and it has that classic "Florida cheese" look. That's not really it though. It's more of a thrift-store thing I suppose. It reminds me of stuff I see at thrift stores, only much bigger.
 I can picture a couple of people divvying up grandma's estate and finding this portrait lurking in the attic, and probably covered up with a sheet. "Oh, God...THAT thing. Do you want it, sis?" "Fuck, no...are you kidding? That thing gives me the heebie-jeebies." "It ain't no Jackson Pollock; that's for sure." "Goodwill?" "Goodwill." A couple weeks later it shows up in a thrift store with a $9.98 price tag on it. When I look at Michelle's painting that's the vibe I get. I can even smell that funky "used" smell that hits you when you walk into a thrift store. Amazing. That's what I get so far.
 The only thing you can say for certain is that compared to all other presidential and first-lady portraits, these stick out like a sore thumb. Obviously that's the point. So far the question to me is why. I'll be looking into articles and videos about these portraits, and when I'm ready I'll scope Barack's portrait for hidden shit. I've read books about subliminal images, and some techniques you can use to better allow yourself to see things hidden in other things. I'm not really in a proper chill state of mind at the moment but I'll get around to it soon enough. Should be fun. Stay tuned. This could get interesting.