© 2026 ABC News

The former first lady and former president were honored with their official portraits, which will remain on permanent display at the White House, at a ceremony on Wednesday.

The former president professed his love for his wife at that event, thanking the artist behind the portrait, Sharon Sprung, for her work.

\"I want to thank Sharon Sprung for capturing everything I love about Michelle: her grace, her intelligence, and the fact that she is fine,\" he said, prompting laughter from the crowd. \"Just saying. She is! Her portrait is stunning.\"

In her portrait, Michelle Obama is dressed in a custom blue Jason Wu gown while sitting on a red sofa, her hair in soft, shoulder-length curls. Former President Obama, meanwhile, is shown in front of a white backdrop in a dark suit, white shirt and light gray tie.

\"PHOTO:
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
PHOTO: Former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama unveil their official White House portraits, Sept. 7, 2022 in Washington, DC.
>

The former first lady has often been celebrated for her various hairstyles, such as when she wore natural curls to an Obama Foundation Summit in Chicago in 2019, as well as the voluminous hairstyle she wore for Biden's inauguration in January 2021.

At that event, she was hailed for both her fashion-forward magenta monochorome jumpsuit, which was designed by Sergio Hudson, and her bouncy, side-parted curls.

","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/GMA/Style/michelle-obamas-braids-big-moment-white-house-portrait/story?id=89519020","legacySlug":"/style/story/michelle-obamas-braids-big-moment-white-house-portrait-89519020","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"18:22","publishDate":"09-08-2022","updatedTime":"18:26","updatedDate":"09-08-2022","socialImage":{"alt":"Former First Lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama embrace at a ceremony to unveil their official White House portraits, Sept. 7, 2022 in Washington, DC.","credit":"Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/michelle-obama-1-gty-gmh-220908_1662643903520_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"9/8/2022 18:22:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":89519020,"headline":"Michelle Obama wears braids to White House event","mediaAssetTitle":"GMA MICHELLE OBAMA","description":"Social media is in love with the former first lady's latest hairstyle.","duration":"3:53","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2019/08/190801_gma_digital_box_braids_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["64685857","86768191","71437669"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"story","date":"August 5, 2019","headline":"5 reasons why women are opting for knotless box braids","section":"style","slug":"/style/story/reasons-women-opting-knotless-box-braids-64685857","id":64685857,"image":{"alt":"5 reasons why women are opting for knotless box braids","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/tessa-thompson-braids-ht-jt-190802_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Lacy Redway/Instagram ","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"July 14, 2022","headline":"Expert tips for keeping natural hair healthy while wearing braids, protective styles","section":"style","slug":"/style/story/celebrity-hairstylist-tips-keeping-natural-hair-healthy-wearing-86768191","id":86768191,"image":{"alt":"Expert tips for keeping natural hair healthy while wearing braids, protective styles","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/jordan-dunn-file-gty-jef-220713_1657746177062_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Edward Berthelot/Getty Images","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"June 26, 2020","headline":"How to do your own box braids like a pro: tools, tips and best practices ","section":"style","slug":"/style/story/box-braids-pro-tools-tips-best-practices-71437669","id":71437669,"image":{"alt":"How to do your own box braids like a pro: tools, tips and best practices ","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/BoxBraidMainImage_0625_v01_DG_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"@kersti.pitre @nocie_x","ratio":"1x1"}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"Michelle Obama wears braids to White House event","description":"Social media is in love with the former first lady's latest hairstyle.","duration":"3:53","uploadDate":"09-08-2022","publication":"09-08-2022","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2019/08/190801_gma_digital_box_braids_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2019/08/190801_gma_digital_box_braids_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/style/story/michelle-obamas-braids-big-moment-white-house-portrait-89519020"}},"playlist":[{"id":"133616358","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133616342","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133522899","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133584123","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133579397","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133482839","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133390157","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133415361","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133414032","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133380485","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133358298","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133350119","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133307515","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133307527","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133282665","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133220149","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133179167","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133144373","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133144059","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133143081","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:style:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"style","title":"Michelle Obama wears braids to White House event","pubTime":"14:22","pubDate":"09-08-2022","modTime":"14:26","modDate":"09-08-2022","taxonomyTags":"none","id":89519020,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"Michelle Obama wears braids to White House event","mediaAssetTitle":"GMA MICHELLE OBAMA","videoId":89519020,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/style/story/michelle-obamas-braids-big-moment-white-house-portrait-89519020"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/89519020","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/89519020","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};