Her Photo Admiring Michelle Obama's Portrait Went Viral. They Just Met

Last month, when The Obamas revealed their official portraits in Washington DC, Michelle Obama said she hoped the painting would inspire young girls, especially girls of colour. Her hope came true when a heartwarming photo of a little girl admiring the former US First Lady's portrait went viral. The photo was taken by Ben Hines, who was at the National Gallery in Smithsonian Institution with his mother, where the Obamas' official portraits hang for public display. The little girl, visibly in awe of Mrs Obama, was photographed staring at Michelle Obama's portrait. Posted last week and shared over 35,000 times on Facebook, the photo eventually reached the former First Lady.
 

On Tuesday, the little fan finally met her idol who she was totally mesmerised by.

In photos posted 11 hours before writing this, Michelle Obama posted a photo and a video of her meeting with the young fan, two-year-old Parker Curry.

"Parker, I'm so glad I had the chance to meet you today (and for the dance party)! Keep on dreaming big for yourself...and maybe one day I'll proudly look up at a portrait of you!" Michelle Obama wrote on Instagram.
 

 

Parker, I'm so glad I had the chance to meet you today (and for the dance party)! Keep on dreaming big for yourself...and maybe one day I'll proudly look up at a portrait of you!

A post shared by Michelle Obama (@michelleobama) on Mar 6, 2018 at 9:19am PST

The two also took time to have a Taylor Swift dance party. The video of their dancing duet has over 3 million views on Twitter.
 

Parker, I'm so glad I had the chance to meet you today (and for the dance party)! Keep on dreaming big for yourself...and maybe one day I'll proudly look up at a portrait of you! pic.twitter.com/faUVTsYWun

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) March 6, 2018

The Obamas official portraits were unveiled last month at Washington's National Gallery. The works by African-American artists Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald were met with both shock and delight on social media.
 

 

As a young girl, even in my wildest dreams, I never could have imagined this moment. Nobody in my family has ever had a portrait - there are no portraits of the Robinsons or the Shields from the South Side of Chicago. This is all a little bit overwhelming, especially when I think about all of the young people who will visit the National Portrait Gallery and see this, including so many young girls and young girls of color who don’t often see their images displayed in beautiful and iconic ways. I am so proud to help make that kind of history. But the fact is that none of this would be possible without the extraordinary artist and woman behind this portrait, @asherald. Thank you, Amy – it was a joy to work with you and get to know you.

A post shared by Michelle Obama (@michelleobama) on Feb 12, 2018 at 9:58am PST

At the star-studded unveiling, Michelle Obama said she hoped the portraits would impact young girls of colours in future.

"They will look up and they will see an image of someone who looks like them, hanging on the wall of this great American institution," she said. "I know the kind of impact that will have on their lives, because I was one of those girls."

(With Reuters inputs)