Parsing Bill Painting

Australian-born artist Petrina Ryan-Kleid creates psychologically charged figurative works that blur power, perception, and myth-making. Her paintings first drew global attention when Parsing Bill, her satirical portrait of President Bill Clinton in a blue dress, went viral years after its quiet debut at the Tribeca Ball. Paired with its companion piece War Games, her work reveals how meaning mutates once public gaze takes over. Ryan-Kleid’s art has appeared in Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, The Daily Mail, and across social media feeds worldwide, becoming a cultural touchpoint discussed everywhere from major news outlets to the Joe Rogan Experience. She has assisted renowned artists such as Jeff Koons and created pieces held in prominent private collections. A descendant of famed Australian Impressionist Frederick McCubbin, Ryan-Kleid brings forward a lineage of observation, now turned toward contemporary power, media, and the psychological theater of modern myth-making.