Washington's National Portrait Gallery has succumbed to a new campaign by Stephen Colbert and granted the TV satirist a prominent, but temporary, display of his portrait.

A portrait of comedian Stephen Colbert hangs outside a bathroom in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington on Wednesday.
(Evan Vucci/Associated Press)

On Wednesday, officials hung a prop painting of the Colbert Report host in what they deemed an "appropriate place" — between the bathrooms near the gallery's U.S. Presidents exhibit.

"We agreed to go along with the joke and hang it for a short time," said museum spokeswoman Bethany Bentley.

"Let me tell you two key things here: his portrait is not coming into the collection and it's not hanging permanently."

Colbert, who portrays a right-wing pundit on his hit Comedy Central show, began campaigning on his Jan. 10 episode for the inclusion of his portrait in a museum on the National Mall. He featured several segments in which he attempted to convince Smithsonian Institute officials of his worthiness.

On Tuesday night's episode, Colbert bragged about his success and said his portrait would be displayed "exactly where I believe it belongs."

A spinoff of satirical news program The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Colbert Report has also become hugely popular with younger viewers who appreciate the shows' skewering of U.S. politicians, the media, celebrities and other prominent figures.

Colbert has somewhat overshadowed Stewart in the past year with a host of real-world campaigns and acknowledgements for the comedic star's conservative persona.

In addition to Colbert's recent attempt to become a U.S. presidential candidate, he has been honoured with his own Ben & Jerry's ice cream flavour, had a hockey team mascot named after him, seen one of his catchwords ("truthiness") declared the word of the year and persuaded the mayor of Oshawa, Ont., to mark a Stephen Colbert Day last spring.

With files from the Associated Press