'Leaning into the fascist aesthetics': Trump's official presidential portrait is given uncomfortable criticism
Donald Trump has revealed his presidential portrait and it's a look, to say the least. Many wonder why he's leaning so hard into the fascist vibes.
Donald TrumpâÂÂs official presidential portrait has been taken, and oh boy, ItâÂÂs a doozy. The official portraits of Trump and incoming-Vice President JD Vance have been released days before the inauguration. The images have caused a little stir online, as TrumpâÂÂs, in particular, is more reminiscent of his mug shot.
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Back when Trump came into power in 2017, his presidential photo saw him smiling and looking upbeat. This time round though, Trump has opted for an entirely different look. In his recently released picture, Trump looks extremely stern, his lips pursed and thin and with one eyebrow raised. Online, many have been pointing out the similarities between this image and the historic mugshot taken of Trump at the Fulton County, Ga. Because thatâÂÂs what you want to be reminded of when looking at your president: the fact he was arrested.
The shot is a pure headshot, taken from the shoulders up, and the main light seems to be coming from below. This is an odd choice, considering that this is popular lighting when wanting to portray something as sinister. VanceâÂÂs portrait, on the other hand, is more of what you would expect. The shot includes more of his torso with his hands crossing his chest, a body language gesture connoting strength when paired with a smile, which Vance is doing. Of the two, Vance looks for more approachable and friendly (if a little smug), whilst Trump looks, well menacing.
Whilst the Trump-Vance transition team has stated that the pictures âÂÂgo hardâ some on the internet had differing opinions. One person tweeted that Trump is âÂÂreaaaalllly leaning into the fascist aesthetic it appears.â While many people look stern for many reasons, fascist dictators usually rule through shows of strength and fear, making them more likely to look threatening in portraits. Benito Mussolini, for example, often appears in portraits looking stern and unsmiling.
Another person suggested that he looks almost cartoonishly villainous.
Forget cartoon, many see Trump as a real-life villain.
Along with comparisons to fascist dictators, there are plenty of people who are seeing the comparison to his mugshot.
Another, more left-field comparison that many are making between his first-term and second-term images is to the Netflix series Squid Game.
On the other hand, many did agree that the portrait goes hard.
TrumpâÂÂs second portrait shows a man coming back pissed. Despite saying he wants to focus on the future, Trump has made numerous comments that reference him wanting revenge. Revenge on all those that he believes have wronged him through the many investigations into his business transactions, misuse of funds, fraud, and his role in the January 6 Insurrection. This portrait sets the tone for the kind of presidency Trump wants to run: cold, hard, and menacing.
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