Donald Trump has overseen an extraordinary refurbishment of the Oval Office during his second term, applying what he called "Trump touches" to the decor. The changes have provoked sharply divided reactions, with supporters hailing a new golden age and critics comparing the room to a professional wrestler's dressing room.
The president has added gold trimming across the ceiling, door frames and fireplace, and even painted the sculpted cherubim inside door frames gold. Gold trophies and vases have multiplied on the mantelpiece, and gold coasters bearing his name have appeared. A White House spokesperson told Fox News that the gold, described as "of the highest quality", was paid for personally by Mr Trump.
The number of paintings on display has also increased, with almost 20 images of presidential predecessors now adorning the walls, compared with just six under Joe Biden and two under Barack Obama. The office also features pictures of the Trump family, a copy of the declaration of independence, and gifts such as the Fifa Club World Cup trophy. To help with the venture, Mr Trump reportedly flew his personal "gold guy", 70-year-old cabinet maker John Icart from Florida, to Washington on Air Force One.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt described the result as a "golden office for the golden age". However, musician Jack White called it "vulgar" and "gaudy", while reporter Jon Keegan noted that decorative medallions on the walls bore a resemblance to inexpensive foam veneer accessories available on Chinese e-commerce site Ali Baba. Other items, including a 19th-century French compotier, gilded urns given to President James Monroe, and silver from the Eisenhower administration, come from the White House's own collection.
Mr Trump's style is said to have been inspired by the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, just as the ballroom of his Mar-a-Lago estate was modelled on the French palace. The changes place him in a tradition of presidents adjusting the Oval Office to their liking, although previous incumbents such as Barack Obama made more understated choices. Obama's handcrafted rug, featuring quotations from leaders including Abraham Lincoln, John F Kennedy and Theodore Roosevelt, carried the line from Martin Luther King: "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice."
