DEPT. OF THE INTERIOR

Obama's Office Gets Extreme Makeover

Out: China plates; In: Bowl of apples.

Expect someone to make a controversy out of this: The Obama Oval Office has traded in the decorative porcelain of its predecessor for gadgets from the Patent Office, contemporary Native American pottery, a framed program from Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington, and a bowl of apples. Since the president opted not to undergo a major decorative overhaul on taking office, the change has been gradual, but after almost a year occupying the office, Obama has made the space his own, with family photos on the famous Resolute desk, a bust of King (replacing one of Winston Churchill), and a bowl for fresh apples for visitors.