As Curator of Commissions for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, Virginia Shore worked closely with President and Mrs. Obama on commissioning 30 artists to create a collection of 28 site-specific installations that demonstrate how art can create opportunities for community connection, empathy, and collective empowerment.

Her vision was shaped by the understanding of the Obama Presidential Center as a civic space rooted in the belief that ordinary people, working together, can effect extraordinary change. The resulting art commissions transform and activate spaces, and contribute to a broader environment that is inspirational, inclusive, and oriented toward hope.

Commissioned artists include: Lindsay Adams, Njideka Akunyili-Crosby, Mark Bradford, Tyanna J. Buie, María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Nick Cave, Nekisha Durrett, Spencer Finch, Theaster Gates, Jeffrey Gibson, Jay Heikes, Jenny Holzer, Richard Hunt, Rashid Johnson, Idris Khan OBE, Sam Kirk, Maya Lin, Hugo McCloud, Julie Mehretu, Aliza Nisenbaum, Jack Pierson, Martin Puryear, Alison Saar, Lorna Simpson, Kiki Smith, Dorian Sylvain, Marie Watt, and Carrie Mae Weems.