A portrait of Beyoncé by photographer Tyler Mitchell will be added to the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. The singer’s portrait made history for being the first Vogue cover shot by an African American photographer.
The 23-year-old made a statement on Instagram saying, “A year ago today we broke the flood gates open. Since then it was important to spend the whole year running through them making sure every piece of the gate was knocked down.”
He continued, “And now I’m glad to share this picture is being acquired into the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery’s permanent collection.”
CNN reports that the National Portrait Gallery “confirmed that the acquisition of the image has been approved and is underway.” Leslie Ureña, Associate Curator of Photographs at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, told CNN, “We are delighted to acquire this magnificent portrait of Beyoncé.”
