Trump outburst prompts removal of his ‘distorted’ portrait from Colorado capitol

A portrait of Donald Trump that was commissioned by fellow Republicans – but which he evidently came to believe had been “purposefully distorted” – was removed from a wall at the Colorado state capitol where it had been since 2019.

After Trump posted complaints about the painting on his Truth Social platform, Colorado’s senate minority leader, Paul Lundeen, a Republican, asked that it be taken down and replaced with one that “depicts his contemporary likeness”. Colorado Republicans had raised more than $10,000 to commission the oil painting that was the target of the president’s ire.

By Tuesday morning, the portrait was no longer hanging next to those of other US presidents.

Democrats in the state legislature did not object to the painting’s removal.

“If the GOP wants to spend time and money on which portrait of Trump hangs in the capitol, then that’s up to them,” they said in a statement.

Republicans have not said how they will pay for a new portrait or who might paint it.

In his post on social media on Sunday, Trump had said he would prefer no picture at all over the one at the Colorado capitol. He expressed discontent with how the portrait there of his presidential predecessor Barack Obama – which was painted by the same artist – “looks wonderful”.

Trump said “nobody likes a bad picture or painting of themselves” and said he believed the one of him at the Colorado “was purposefully distorted a level even I, perhaps, have never seen before”.

The presidential portraits are the purview of the Colorado building advisory committee. Nonetheless, Trump blamed the painting he disliked on Colorado’s governor, Jared Polis, a Democrat.

The presidential portraits up to and including the late Jimmy Carter were donated as a collection. The others were donated by political parties or paid for by outside fundraising.

It wasn’t the first time the portrait of Trump has drawn attention. Before its installation, a prankster placed a picture of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin near the spot intended for Trump.

Trump is widely seen as an admirer of Putin.

The timing of Trump’s complaints about the portrait were not immediately clear.

Some people initially objected to artist Sarah Boardman’s depiction of Trump as “nonconfrontational” and “thoughtful” when they considered him just the opposite, according to an interview with the Colorado Times Recorder from the time. She told the news outlet that she wanted to create a likeness that was apolitical and would stand the test of time.

Boardman did not return phone and email messages on Monday and Tuesday seeking comment.

The Associated Press contributed reporting