A mural on the marble floor of the White House in Washington, D.C. that was painted by artist Robert Mapplethorpe was knocked down by the powerful storm.
The White House, in Washington and across the country, was inundated with rain Tuesday, forcing the closure of schools and other areas and bringing down power lines.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters that the mural was removed Monday and that the Department of Homeland Security was monitoring the situation.
The mural, by Mappleethorpe, had been installed in the Roosevelt Room at the White Senate and had been tagged with a yellow spray paint that read “HOLY BATTLE.”
He had also created a giant black rectangle, which was hung in the Oval Office, according to his website.
Mappleheorpe told The Associated Press that he was not aware of any damage to the mural.
“I didn’t do any damage,” Mappletherpe said.
“The graffiti was very small.
It was just me just spray painting.”
Mapplehetorpe said he would continue to paint, but that it would be hard to get the mural up again, saying that the White Houses wall would be damaged, too.
Mpembe said he did not think the White house was damaged enough to be taken down, and that there were no reports of flooding.
The wall, which has been a symbol of the country since its founding in 1787, was originally covered with marble tiles.
The president is known for painting it as a reminder of his accomplishments in office.
The painting of the mural is a reference to a scene from the movie The Emperor’s New Clothes, where a painting of Emperor Constantine is painted on a wall of the Capitol, a reference that Mappleholtorpe also made.
“In the Emperor’s new clothes, the marble is all red,” he told the AP.
“That’s the Emperor.”