Michelle Obama to Unravel Her Sartorial Messaging in ‘The Look’
The former first lady announces her forthcoming book, which will shed light on her fashion choices in and out of the White House.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama, in a departure from politics and well-being, will shift the focus to her personal style evolution in a new book to be published this fall.
Obama made the announcement on her social media this week that The Crown Publishing Group will release her book The Look on November 4 and it will feature more than 200 photographs including never-before-published images.
“During our family’s time in the White House, the way I looked was constantly being dissected—what I wore, how my hair was styled. For a while now, I’ve been wanting to reclaim more of that story, to share it in my own way. I’m thankful to be at a stage in life where I feel comfortable expressing myself freely—wearing what I love and doing what feels true to me. And I’m excited to share some of what I’ve learned along the way,” Obama said on her social media.
United States first ladies have been endlessly assessed by their sartorial choices—a criticism that they are often evaluated by their style over substance. In The Look, Obama is expected to share how she utilizes the beauty and intrigue of fashion to draw attention to her message from the moment she entered the public eye during her husband’s U.S. Senate campaign through her time as the first Black first lady and today as one of this country’s most influential figures.
Readers will have a look behind the scenes and hear from people including Meredith Koop, Obama’s trusted stylist, her makeup artist Carl Ray, hairstylists Yene Damtew and Njeri Radway, and many of the designers who have dressed Obama for notable events. The Look will reveal how the former first lady’s most memorable looks came together, but also to tell a powerful story about how people present themselves, according to the publisher.
“Inside, you’ll find some of the outfits that have meant the most to me, but more importantly, the moments that I lived through in them—big and small, personal and political, historic and ordinary—that were as memorable as the clothes themselves,” Obama said.
Obama’s intimate stories illuminate how her approach to dressing has evolved throughout her life—from the colorful sheath dresses, cardigans, and brooches she wore during her time as first lady to the bold suits, denim, and braids of her post–White House life and all the active looks and beautiful gowns in between, according to Crown.
Farah Jasmine Griffin, the William B. Ransford Professor of English and Comparative Literature and African American Studies and Professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies at Columbia University, writes in her foreword to the book:
“She stood before us as a leader, giving us the charge to fight for a better and more just world, assigning us the task of getting to work, reminding us that the price of citizenship in a democracy is that we each ‘do something.’ The look, like the woman, was bold, powerful, forward-looking, visionary, and empowering for everyone who dares to believe in the possibility of better tomorrows.”
The Look will be the fourth book authored by Obama, whose other works include the 2018 memoir Becoming and The Light We Carry, published in 2022. Information about her forthcoming book is available at www.michelleobamabooks.com.
Melania Trump Weighs In on Tech, Families and Safety Workshop
Less than three weeks after Melania Trump helped usher in a new law that criminalizes the sharing of nonconsensual sexually explicit images, the first lady is keeping a watchful eye on how the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is assessing how social media and the digital age is exploiting and hurting families.
On Wednesday, the first lady submitted a letter to an FTC workshop entitled “The Attention Economy: How Big Tech Firms Exploit Children and Hurt Families” where she informed those in attendance that she looked forward to hearing the outcomes of the workshop “so we can continue to shape federal policies that protect children.”
“We will work together to develop tools to empower parents and youth, and we will lean on tech executives in the private sector to do their part,” Mrs. Trump said in the letter, although it was unclear at the time of publication of how the commission and the first lady would collaborate.
“Like many of you, I’ve met with survivors and families whose lives have been affected by non-consensual intimate imagery and deepfake abuse. Let their courage continue to inspire us to find solutions to protect children and youth from online harm,” Mrs. Trump said in the letter.
She went on to thank FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson for his leadership on this issue.
“I’m also incredibly grateful to the First Lady for her leadership on the Take It Down Act. Getting legislation done in any circumstance is very difficult, and the Take It Down Act could not have gotten through Congress without the First Lady’s intervention and leadership,” said Ferguson, in a statement. “The First Lady’s advocacy in particular was extremely valuable to get this bill across the finish line.”
Mrs. Trump championed the passage of the Take It Down Act through Congress, as part of her Be Best initiative, which has long focused on children’s well-being and online protection.
The Weekly Wrap
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