The Man Behind Kathy Griffin’s Infamous Trump Photo, the Celebutantes’ Favorite and a Texas-Bound Art Force: The Many Sides of Tyler Shields

A postcard invite came across my desk for an upcoming exhibition at the Samuel Lynne Gallery. Emblazoned on the front was a figure being doused with paint in myriad colors. The title: “The Color of Impact.” The artist: Tyler Shields.

The name seemed familiar and since I was intrigued by the image I decided to do some online investigating.

Immediately, images popped up of Hayden Panettiere, Colton Haynes and Emma Roberts. Is he simply a court photographer for the social media celebrity set?

His subjects have been Lindsay Lohan and other such celebutantes… not figures that I would normally associate with depth and substance (see: the Obamas or at least Meryl Streep).

Is that good or bad? Who am I to say.

I spent time with Shields on the phone as he was making last-minute preparations for the upcoming Dallas show (which opens Saturday at Samuel Lynne Gallery) and his trip to Texas. Let’s start out with the inevitable question regarding the infamous shot he took last May of comedian Kathy Griffin holding a decapitated, bloodied mask resembling President Donald Trump. This caused quite the uproar, resulting in the notorious attention seeking Griffin to actually go into exile due to threats from the public and the president.

Shields feels that approximately nine months after the controversy, Griffin is even more popular than ever — at least globally, as her concerts outside of the United States saw record sales. In the U.S., she seems to be back on top as well, at least with the liberal set in their liberal hamlets.

Her June show at Carnegie Hall sold out in 24 hours. Now, would she be able to sell out in Branson, Missouri, or any red state for that matter? I am guessing not since the articles I pulled up on Fox News are still lambasting the comedian.

When posed with the question of who would be Shields’ fantasy subjects (both living and dead) he answered that Marilyn Monroe has always been of fascination and growing up he was intrigued by Madonna. A more current dream portrait would be of an actual model — Cara Delevingne.

I was most interested in Shields’ process of capturing the images for his upcoming show. The exhibition is part of the larger body of work — the Paint series. These shots naturally call to mind the work of the Abstract Expressionists of the 1950s and particularly the “action painters,” which included Willem de Kooning and Jackson Pollock.

Pollock, famously known as Jack the Dripper, became infamous when he laid out his large canvases on the floor of his studio and splashed paint on the surface.

When asked about his knowledge of the history of art, Shields’ shared that his exploration has been more recent. He was a self-taught artist that first became known in the late ’90s and early aughts as a music video director. Then he later morphed in to more fine-art photography when he discovered and began experimenting with iconic Hasselblad cameras.

The subjects from the Paint series were working actors, not models as I initially assumed. Shields could only get one take before cleanup occurred and before the next shot was staged and taken. I thought this would be a lengthy endeavor and he confirmed it was. Shields took more than 100 images, with 25 making his cut for the exhibition.

A Skateboard Influence

Tyler is looking forward to his trip to Dallas. He was born in Jacksonville, Florida, and as a result of wanting to supplement his family’s income decided to go into professional skateboarding in his teen years. An old friend from Shields’ extreme sports circuit days lives in Dallas. He will pick Shields up from the airport and then they might hit some of his favorite spots.

The artist generally favors high and low, Nick & Sam’s or a roadside diner. This makes sense since his work seems to mirror that predilection — although given some of his subjects I would say errs to the latter.

My conversation and contemplation of the artist’s work remind me of an essay I read in graduate school by the renowned Leo Steinberg. The piece from the early 1960s entitled: “Contemporary Art and the Plight of the Public” posed that there was a “shock of discomfort, or the bewilderment or the anger of the boredom which some people always feel, and all people sometimes feel, when confronted with an unfamiliar style.”

When I reread the piece, my realization was that given the rapid delivery of images via the Internet and other communication platforms that the period of shock was growing shorter and shorter. In my mind, the public had seen it all and was becoming either jaded or immune from shock, which was seemingly becoming cliché. So, to Shields’ point, is the new period of time nine months?

Shields has been criticized for copying other artist’s work. However, I know that most contemporary art has some sort of referential quality, as it’s hard to present something that is completely original in terms of artistic process or subject matter. Upon further investigation, though, many of Shields’ works seem terribly similar to other noteworthy artists.

Whether it be his choice of narrative or composition of the image, this all begs the question: How much referential and appropriation is credible in today’s age when nothing is new?

So, you might be thinking, what is my summation? Well, after my conversation I was happy to know that we both had similar pasts. Both being immersed and fascinated by the world of skateboarding, which still has a lingering impact on our aesthetics. He seems to know the art market, which might make some feel suspect of this work.

However, Andy Warhol was also very astute to the gallery world as is his heir apparent, the blue-chip bad-boy Jeff Koons. As to my research in to his past and present work, I am still slightly suspect but will reserve further judgment until I experience in-person.

Tyler Shields: The Color of Impact opens tomorrow (Saturday, August 4) with a reception from 5 to 8 pm. It is on view at the Samuel Lynne Gallery (1105 Dragon Street) through September 1.