The large portrait of Whoopi Goldberg now hanging in Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal A shows her posed as Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, a concept crafted by photographer Timothy White.
In the photo — part of a new airport installation titled “What Exit? The New Jersey Spirit,” — the actor, comedian, author and longtime West Orange resident wears not only Italian Renaissance dress and hairstyle, but also the Mona Lisa’s famously inscrutable gaze.
The comedic irony behind the dramatic 2009 photo is that it was shot for a Poise Pads ad campaign, which used celebrities dressed as historical women and frank language to destigmatize bladder‑control issues…