Melania Trump surprised her devoted Instagram followers with her new official White House portrait, which was unveiled on Monday.
The black and white image was a big departure from former First Ladies, who have traditionally chosen much more colorful images.
Melania, whose stylist Hervé Pierre has previously mentioned the challenge of dressing her due to many American designers declining, opted for a black Dolce & Gabbana pantsuit paired with a white shirt.
The Washington Monument was visible in the background.
The photo was taken on January 21, the day after the inauguration, in the Yellow Oval Room of the residence by Belgian photographer Régine Mahaux.
Melania, 54, shared the photo on the official FLOTUS Instagram account, which has four million followers.
Some followers had subscribed during the time they were following Jill Biden’s account and were surprised to find themselves now following Melania.
Despite some social media critics suggesting heavy photo editing, Melania’s followers admired the striking photo, with some even drawing comparisons to a Vogue cover.
Melania Trump shocked her devoted fans with her new official portrait, which was unveiled on Monday
The previous official portrait of the first lady was released on April 3, 2017 and was in color
‘Meta needs to cool it with the force follows,’ one popular comment read.
‘Oh dear I forgot to unfollow, see you in four years,’ another person said.
However, some of Melania’s fans were quick to jump to her defense.
‘Most elegant First Lady in office!!!’ one MAGA supporter rejoiced.
‘You are a diva and a great boss,’ another complimented, calling her a ‘wonderful wife and mother.’
Some thought the picture looked strange, with one person saying, ‘That’s not an official photo. That’s a heavily Photoshopped official photo.’
On X (previously Twitter), some people accused her of heavily editing the image.
‘Looks like she’s made of plastic. It’s so over-processed, heavy softening and blurring filtering. There’s nothing warm or real about this image,’ a commenter wrote disparagingly.
‘You are a diva and a great boss,’ one person complimented the portrait, calling Melania, seen above at the inauguration, a ‘wonderful wife and mother’
Some of Melania’s fans were up in arms over the fact that she wasn’t given the same respect in the fashion community that previous first ladies received
‘Photoshop deluxe,’ another critic agreed.
Some of Melania’s fans were recently left up in arms over the fact that she wasn’t given the same respect in the fashion community that previous first ladies received despite the glamorous portrait.
‘Jill Biden was given three Vogue covers. Zero for Melania. What a joke,’ Link Lauren, the former senior advisor to RFK Jr., tweeted.
However, some thought the new portrait was enough even though the former model has been snubbed by Vogue EIC Anna Wintour repeatedly.
One Melania super fan tweeted, ‘Who needs a Vogue cover and Annie Leibowitz photo spread when you have this?’
