Melania Trump may be a mostly absent first lady so far, but she's following the traditional path when it comes to official portraits.
Trump's office in the East Wing released her picture Monday, "taken in her new residence at the White House," according to the official statement.
Trump, 46, a former fashion model, is pictured from just below the waist up, wearing a black blazer and a black, sparkly scarf tied around her neck. Her arms are crossed with her left hand in front, where a huge diamond ring glitters on her ring finger.
“I am honored to serve in the role of First Lady, and look forward to working on behalf of the American people over the coming years,” Trump said.
According to the photo credit, the picture was taken by an Agence France Press photographer, Regine Mahaux.
Trump's new press secretary, Stephanie Grisham, also tweeted about the portrait release.
First Lady Melania Trump's official @WhiteHouse portrait released today! https://t.co/cC5sBvS3XO @FLOTUS @MELANIATRUMP #FirstLady
— Stephanie Grisham (@StephGrisham45) April 3, 2017
Trump's office did not say where in the White House the photo was taken. When former first lady Michelle Obama's official portraits were released, in 2009 and then in 2013, the photos were taken in the Blue Room and the Green Room, respectively.
Trump has been at the White House in person only a few times since President Trump was inaugurated; she remains in Trump Tower in New York until the youngest Trump child, 11-year-old Barron, finishes the school year. Current plans are for them to move to the White House in June.
Her portrait is now on the Trump White House website, with a brief biography. Born in Slovenia, Trump became a citizen in 2006, about a year after she married Donald Trump. She is only the second first lady born outside the U.S. since Louisa Adams, the London-born wife of the John Quincy Adams, the nation’s sixth president.
FLOTUS portraits usually aren't controversial but there was a mini-uproar over Obama's 2009 portrait because she dared to show off her toned arms in a sleeveless dress — which turned out to be a signature style for her — and some critics complained it was too informal for the White House.
Trump's arms were fully covered.
