Glamour, controversy and visual storytelling mark the exhibition at In the Pink Gallery
In The Pink – Fine Photo Art Gallery in Loulé has unveiled the first exhibition in Portugal by American photographer and filmmaker Tyler Shields.
Running until the end of April, the exhibition brings together a decade’s worth of work, marking the artist’s debut in the Algarve and presenting a selected sample of his visual universe, where cinema, fashion and storytelling come together.
Known for photographs that challenge symbols of power, luxury and pop culture, Shields has built an international career defined by impactful images.
His compositions often explore the tension between glamour and destruction, revealing what lies beneath the seductive surface of contemporary icons. The exhibition features some of his most recognisable works, as well as recent pieces. Among them is the famous photograph Burning Birkin, a work that helped consolidate his international reputation by confronting one of the greatest symbols of contemporary luxury with an unexpected act.
Nine lips
“There’s a bit of everything,” says Shields. Among the highlights of the exhibition are two works being shown publicly for the first time: Veil, a photograph taken a few years ago and never before shown, and Nine Lips, a recent work released just a few weeks before the show in Loulé. The latter is part of a series that the artist began exploring more than a decade ago.
“The model is an excellent actress, and I thought she had perfect lips,” he says. “It’s always very specific things. I see something in a person and immediately picture a photo.”
The way Shields constructs his pictures almost always begins long before pressing the shutter button.
Burning Birkin
“I see all the images in my head beforehand,” he reveals. It is a process that can happen in the moment, as in Girls on the Beach, or take months to materialise, as with Alice in Wonderland, for which he had to find the “perfect rabbit”.
This approach also reveals the strong influence of cinema on his work. Shields grew up fascinated by films and seeks to achieve the same narrative power of cinematic images in his photographs.
“The idea is to get a photo that looks like it’s part of a story,” he explains. “The photo is the middle of the story, and the audience imagines the beginning and the end.”
Interestingly, photography was not his first career choice. Before picking up a camera, Shields was a professional inline skater and even competed in the X Games. Later, he turned towards music videos and the audiovisual world. His foray into photography happened almost by chance.
“I had a housemate who was a photographer,” he recalls. “I borrowed his camera, took a photo of an empty cupboard, and that image became famous on the internet.” He was about 23 years old. Shortly afterwards, the photo appeared on a billboard, marking the beginning of an internationally renowned career.
Although he is self-taught, Shields found inspiration in some of the most influential names in the history of photography. Among his references, he cites Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Helmut Newton. “I still use old cameras because I like how slow they are,” he says. “I’ve never taken a photo in auto mode in my life,” he asserts.
His work has been widely recognised but also controversial. Many of his pictures provoke strong reactions, dividing opinion and sparking debate about the limits of art. For Shields, this diversity of interpretation is part of the very nature of his work. “A photo can shock one person and move another,” he says.
“The photo doesn’t change; what changes is the viewer’s experience.”
At a time when artificial intelligence and social media are transforming the way images are produced and consumed, Shields believes that authenticity will still be valued. “The more technology there is, the more people value real photos,” he says. “All the collectors I speak to love the process I go through. They love the story behind it.”
Shields revealed that, even before the exhibition opened in Loulé, several works had already been sold.
“There are many good collectors in Portugal. From what I understand, the art community here is incredible,” he notes. And the public’s reaction is an essential part of his exhibitions: “It’s always interesting to see which work sells first. That says a lot.”
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