Chuck Close has been appointed to the Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. Chuck Close was named by Obama member of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities recently.

He is joined by new appointees Fred Goldring, Sheila Johnson, Pamela Joyner, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Ken Solomon.

Said Obama earlier this month:

“I am proud that these distinguished individuals will serve in my Administration. The arts and the humanities enhance the vibrancy of our society, inspire us and strengthen our democracy. I look forward to working with them in the weeks and months ahead.”

The White House described Chuck Close’s bio as the following:

“Chuck Close is a visual artist noted for his highly inventive techniques used to paint the human face, and is best known for his large-scale, photo based portrait paintings. He is also an accomplished printmaker and photographer whose work has been the subject of more than 200 solo exhibitions in more than 20 countries, including major retrospective exhibitions at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and most recently at The State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.

“In 2000, Mr. Close was presented with the prestigious National Medal of Arts by President Clinton. Close is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and has served on the boards of many arts organizations.”