Tyler Shields
Legs Up Birkin, 2025
Chromogenic print
20 x 16
30 x 24
40 x 32
60 x 48
72 x 57
30 x 24
40 x 32
60 x 48
72 x 57
Copyright The Artist
Legs Up Birkin is a sharp, provocative tableau that merges fashion, desire, and power into a single unforgettable image. Shot in lustrous black and white, the photograph features a pair...
Legs Up Birkin is a sharp, provocative tableau that merges fashion, desire, and power into a single unforgettable image. Shot in lustrous black and white, the photograph features a pair of inverted legs—poised, elongated, and perfectly balanced in glossy stilettos—supporting a coveted Hermès Birkin bag. The composition is both playful and subversive, transforming the body into a pedestal for one of the world’s most iconic status objects.
Shields’ signature blend of glamour and irreverence is on full display here. By elevating the Birkin through literal physical elevation, he satirizes the extremes of luxury culture while reveling in its visual allure. The stark minimal backdrop, the sculptural tension of the pose, and the fetishistic gleam of the bag work together to create an image that is equal parts fashion editorial, performance, and commentary. Legs Up Birkin is Shields at his most bold—stylish, seductive, and unapologetically tongue-in-cheek.