“Cy Twombly’s ‘Scattered Blossom’ paintings represent one of our last living legends making astounding contemporary art. The symbolism of including Twombly in the White House is one of embracing the cutting edge. That seems highly relevant for a president whose challenge is to break with so many of the trappings of our past, including our dependence on fossil fuels, our dilapidated infrastructure, our imperialistic arrogance, etc.”
Risa Needleman and Benjamin Tischer, co-owners, Invisible-Exports gallery, New York

Risa: “Rashid Johnson, Pinar Yolacan, and Mickey Smith. All three of these artists deal with the politics of culture, as well as the (self- and unself-) portraiture of predetermined groups. Obama, similarly, has faced the portraiture of a nation and seeks, as these artists do, to redefine what we see as ourselves.”

Benjamin: “I would like to include some don’ts. No Warhol, no Koons, no Hirst. While these artists have some great work, their inflated value is to the art market what AIG is to the banking world. They ruin it a little for everyone else. My choices: Tom Sachs’s Nutsy’s McDonald’s (2001). It’s practical, fully functional, and so fucking American it hurts. And Him by Maurizio Cattelan. Because really, what would throw diplomats off their game more than a little praying Hitler in the middle of the foyer?”

Nicole Will, Bortolami gallery, New York

“Eric Wesley’s Remix (Stage Coach) (2008–09) is a bronze statue based on the Western Union/Wells Fargo stagecoaches. Wesley scrambles the parts into one big tumbling mess. This piece, in good humor, placed on the White House lawn, would represent our current muddled financial state, using this symbol of financial freedom now assembled in chaos.

“Aaron Young’s Ain’t No Sunshine (2008) is a steel, chain-link fence, and 24K gold work that was installed at our booth at Art Basel Miami Beach 2008. Young’s art is derived from the rebellious youth culture and its desire to push through, vandalize, and break down barriers, both symbolic and territorial. This fence is pried apart, allowing whomever wants to pass through. The election of Obama by a youthful generation has a distinct parallel to these works.

“Tom Burr’s An American Garden (1993) is an earlier work in which Burr created an exact replica of a portion of Central Park called the Ramble, which was designed by Fredrick Law Olmsted in 1858, and placed it at an exhibition site in the Netherlands. George Baker wrote ‘… Burr’s reconstructed and pristine garden threw into relief the difference between planned design and public use…’”
Jayme McLellan, owner and curator, Civilian Art Projects, Washington, D.C.

“The Obamas would most definitely benefit from having the work of Sam Gilliam in the White House. Gilliam is internationally recognized as the foremost contemporary African-American Color Field painter and lyrical abstractionist. Further, he has called Washington, D.C., his home since 1962. Adding his work to the collection would contribute to the breadth of the White House collection and support D.C. as a place for historical, living artists.

“Ken Ashton resides in Washington, D.C., and has spent the past decade photographing neighborhoods throughout the world. He has undertaken an encyclopedic project of photographing communities in the Northeastern corridor of the U.S., from D.C. to Boston, entitled ‘Megalopolis.’

“Iona Rozeal Brown’s most recent paintings are an unprecedented mixture of anonymous courtesans, geisha, and other Japanese subjects. She explores the theme of Afro-Asiatic allegory, addressing the global influence of African-American culture as fetish. Brown’s work signals the energy, critical direction, and complexity of contemporary practice that is engaged in a tenuous marriage of commerce and resistance. Brown brings a subversion to her art and manipulates hyper-self-conscious imagery to articulate contemporary concerns regarding race, gender, and class.”
Emilio Steinberger, co-director, Haunch of Venison New York