Tyler Shields 'Chromatic'    Feb 8 - Mar 23, 2013

Tyler Shields, returns to Imitate Modern on February 7th with ‘Chromatic’. An explosive mix of colour and texture, the Chromatic series features the cast of hit American TV show Revenge, Lydia Hearst and his long-term muse and girlfriend, Francesca Eastwood.

At Shields’ first show at Imitate Modern guests were greeted by lingerie-clad models devouring raw meat; a homage to his famous portrait of Hollywood starlet Mischa Barton licking raw steak.

‘I was starting out professionally and I went to see the owner of a top American fashion magazine. When I said I wanted to take wild, crazy, sexy, violent, provocative images unlike anything anyone had done before in the over-protective world of entertainment, they said to me: ‘That will never happen.’ At that point I realised I wasn’t going to be able to go the traditional route in photography.’ - Tyler Shields

This is the same photographer who brought us the infamous blood-soaked Lindsay Lohan portraits and staged a gun fight at one of his exhibition openings.

For his latest exhibition, Tyler has focused on Eastwood as his inspiration. The Chromatic collection displays a frenzy of brightly coloured paint powder to create a strong contrast between bright colours, warm light and dark silhouettes.

His work drifts between shockingly controversial and subtly sexy. When discussing Tyler’s pieces, GQ said ‘As a talking point they don’t just break the ice, they blow it to Mars’.