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Photos: Presidents’ Official White House Portraits Over Past 100 Years

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  • The White House released a new official portrait of President Donald Trump in June.
  • The dramatically lit photo shows Trump against a dark backdrop with a serious expression.
  • Unlike most contemporary presidential portraits, the background doesn’t include an American flag.

President Donald Trump’s official White House portrait does not feature an American flag in the background — it’s the first presidential photo in over 60 years without one.

Taken by chief White House photographer Daniel Torok, the dramatically lit photo shows Trump against a dark backdrop with a serious expression. The style hearkens back to the past presidential portrait styles of Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover, and Calvin Coolidge, who also appeared unsmiling against dark backgrounds.

And while there is no flag behind Trump in his new portrait, he is wearing an American flag pin on the lapel of his blue suit, a tradition that began with President George W. Bush’s photo.

A portrait of Trump released earlier last year, which did feature an American flag, was taken during the presidential transition period and “was always meant to serve as a placeholder,” a White House official told Business Insider.

The new photo is one of several aesthetic changes Trump has made to the White House in his second non-consecutive term. In the Entrance Hall, he moved President Barack Obama’s painted White House portrait across the hall and replaced it with a painting depicting his raised fist following an assassination attempt. He has also added numerous gilded gold furnishings to the Oval Office and paved over the lawn in the Rose Garden to create a terrace he said would be better suited for large events.

Take a look at how presidential portraits have changed through the years.

President Calvin Coolidge, 1923


President Calvin Coolidge's portrait.



A portrait of President Calvin Coolidge.

Library of Congress

President Herbert Hoover, 1929




A portrait of President Herbert Hoover.

Underwood & Underwood

President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1933




An official portrait of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Elias Goldensky/Library of Congress

President Harry Truman, 1945




President Harry Truman’s official White House portrait.

Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images

President Dwight Eisenhower, 1953




President Dwight Eisenhower’s official White House portrait.

Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images

President John F. Kennedy, 1961




President John F. Kennedy’s official White House portrait.

Bachrach/Getty Images

President Lyndon B. Johnson, 1963




President Lyndon B. Johnson’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo

President Richard Nixon, 1969




President Richard Nixon’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo

President Gerald Ford, 1974




President Gerald Ford’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo

President Jimmy Carter, 1977




President Jimmy Carter’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo by Karl Schumacher

President Ronald Reagan, 1981




President Ronald Reagan’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo

President George H.W. Bush, 1989




President George H.W. Bush’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo by David Valdez

President Bill Clinton, 1993




President Bill Clinton’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo

President George W. Bush, 2001




President George W. Bush’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo by Eric Draper

President Barack Obama, 2009




President Barack Obama’s official White House portrait.

Official White House photo by Pete Souza

President Barack Obama, 2013




President Barack Obama’s second official White House portrait.

Official White House photo by Pete Souza

President Donald Trump, 2017




President Donald Trump’s first White House portrait.

Official White House photo by Shealah Craighead

President Joe Biden, 2021




The official portrait of President Joe Biden, taken in the Library room at the White House.

Official White House photo by Adam Schultz

President Donald Trump, 2025




President Donald Trump’s second official White House portrait.

Official White House photo by Daniel Torok

President Donald Trump, 2025




Donald Trump’s new White House portrait.

Official White House photo by Daniel Torok

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