Review: Well-Hung, Imitate Modern (photography)

Well Hung, the controversial collaborative exhibition between Hollywood photographer Tyler Shields and British artist Maximilian Wiedemann, showcases the dark side of celebrity-culture and its obsession with financial gain.

In Shield’s highly-anticipated UK debut he captures starlets in a range of provocative appearances.

The photographer is as famous for his friends as he is his work – running in circles with some of LA’s brightest stars, including Emma Roberts and Twilight actress Ashley Greene. Gal pal Lindsay Lohan cites him as her favourite photographer as the industry eats out of his hands.

Everything about the exhibition is designed to shock. Shield’s wants a response – not caring if it’s negative. His subjects are only too willing to do anything for him, from posing with guns to being doused in champagne.

Imitate modern, the urban contemporary answer to the Tate, is the perfect venue for such an evocative display by one of America’s new generation of celebrity profilers.

Entering, your eyes are drawn to Wiedemann’s light box instillation ‘Closer to God in Heels.’ The room is complimented with the majority of the collection; including the blood soaked image ‘Lohan Knife,’one of Shield’s most infamous shoots.

Downstairs is devoted to Shield’s latest shoot with Glee star Heather Morris, which has drawn a lot of criticism for its apparent glamorisation of domestic violence. A focal piece ‘Hemo and TS’ gives you a glimpse of the young Hollywood photographer himself – Shield’s never asks his subjects to do something he wouldn’t do himself.

The real power of the images are the subjects’ eagerness to break taboo. None of the celebrity’s here worry about keeping a clean image. Mischa Barton’s recent shoot with raw meat, which has enraged activists, was among the collection. She’s making a come-back then – unless her next casting agent is a PETA supporter.

Wiedemann’s pieces build on Shield’s work, mixing-up the originals with his Warhol-esque take. The enamel screen prints on canvas are colourful and stand-out brightly against the white walls of the venue. The images are overlain with critiquing slogans, which intertwine his view of celebrity culture with Shield’s.

The pairing is perfect – the most successful pieces are Wiedemann’s canvases that have combined Shield’s brilliance with his own pop-art style. ‘The Better You Look the More You See’ is without doubt the exhibit’s highlight; owning it will set you back £6,500.

The event runs until November 14, and with no announced plans to display in the UK again, this may be one of the only chances to see Shield’s notorious collection up-close.

(Picture: ‘Lohan-Knife’ – Tyler Shields)