Blog About Photography

Courtesy of the White House via Getty Images

So this has been my new ritual since Barack got sworn in as president: When I sit down at the computer to check my nightly vitals, I spend at least five or six minutes scouring the internet of new pictures of the commander-in-chief of my heart sitting in the Oval Office. I have an Oval Office fetish, actually. I know all kinds of trivia about it, the traditions that surround it’s re-decoration, who had what color carpet (Clinton: blue, Bush: yellow) and so on. My fascination with the most exclusive room in the world though is very separate from my feelings for whatever shit sack occupies it – until now.

President Obama has had a pretty busy first week and he hasn’t gotten around to redecorating yet. He’s taken down most of Bush’s art, most replacing, if I’m not mistaken, a portrait of Teddy Roosevelt with one of Abraham Lincoln. (Washington still graces the mantle.) Bush’s yellow rug, couches and drapes are all still present. And the laptop Obama promised to place on the FDR desk still has yet to materialize.

This is all based on the couple of pictures that exist of Obama’s oval office. There are, in fact, only a handful of them. By the end of an administration, official White House photos of the president and his guests in the Office abound. But a week in, there are three official ones including the one up top and a handful of wire images from when Obama signed the order to close Guantanamo Bay.

One thing that I just started thinking about while writing this is why all the art in the Oval Office has to be America-themed. Like, if they filled the walls with Pollocks and Van Goghs and Kneels, would anyone meeting with the president forget that they were in the office of a head of state? I don’t think so. Why limit yourself to the same handful 19th century oils? 

Anyway, the thing I’m really trying to share with you is that it’s amazing to see this guy sitting at the desk in there. That’s really my point. 
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UPDATE: Fixed the link. Sorry for being an idiot.

This is a story from the New York Times today that’s worth taking a look at. It’s written by an Iraqi sculptor and, not surprisingly, provides a new view of how terrifyingly dark and impossibly fucked up it is there.

So every time I pick up my pen and try to sketch, I find myself drawing scenes of death, and when I try to think of it as a way to let off steam a little, I start to feel pity for the person who is going to see it.

See?

Gothamist publisher Jake Dobkin totally nailed it in a Tweet he sent out just a moment ago.

Park Slope as metaphor for America: a bank on every corner and nowhere to buy bread
1 minute ago from txt

I think that’s pretty much sums it up.

© Greg Wasserstrom

Eliot Spitzer is no longer New York’s governor come next working week. Takers?

© Greg Wasserstrom

Merry Christmas, everybody. I hope you’re enjoying quality time with your family, thinking about the birth of Christ, etc. And if you don’t celebrate Christmas, you know, like me, then I hope you enjoy the day, few days, off from work or school or whatever it is that occupies your time. Here’s what’s been occupying mine:

• Last week, after about 9 months of “interning,” I began work as a contributing editor over at Wonkette, Gawker’s political site. I finally have a regular gig that also happens to be sort of a dream job! So, you know, go and check out my handiwork and stuff, even if you hate politics! So we do! Mine are the posts that say “Greg Wasserstrom” next to them and for the moment, I write 5 per day. To celebrate, I’m writing this entry in the style of one of my ubiquitous headline roundups. [Wonkette]
• Tiny Vices included me in a recent update, took me like more than a month to find out about it. Also, I friended Tim Barber on Facebook and OMG we’re totes friends now. [Tiny Vices]
• Finally stopped holding up the entire Fjord project. Opps! Sorry guys! [Fjord]
• Website tweak and a couple of new photographs. [Home]

I think that’s everything. So, Happy Holidays, Happy New Year,