Turkeys

There are a lot of points in the whole Olivia Nuzzi press apocalypse (used techically) upon which one could fixate, but for me it was this from the artnews.com article:

"How to Disappear was commissioned months before Vanity Fair made the decision to feature the work in the December issue alongside an excerpt from Nuzzi's new book “American Canto” which will also be available on Dec 2."

Sadly, Occam's Razor suggests that this is a lie, but what if it wasn't? Was the portrait commissioned out of excitement over the hire? If so, was it by the whole editorial board? Was the intention to hang it in meetings? Was it by one particularly enthusiastic higher-up? What was their plan for it? In my heart, I would like to believe it was part of the job offer. "If you sign on with us, we'll get a controversy-courting dipshit to paint a nude of you, and then we'll send it to Basel!" I guess this is also compatible with the Occam's Razor scenario, as the profile was almost certainly agreed upon along with the hiring.