‘Shudder’ showcases five nice celebrity photographers

JEREMY AND CLAIRE WEISS, “DAVID LYNCH”

These are not the ones who are killing Britney Spears. These are the ones who come with parabolic reflectors and light meters, and make Britney Spears look beautiful, or at least properly haunted. They do not show her vag stubble or her menses-stained panties, though often they’re a little lo-fi, a little more Cobrasnake snapshot than rococo Leibovitz pose. We are in a more deconstructed era of documentation, after all, a kind of ’70s naturalist redux rather than a masters of the universe ’80s perfection, when it was all shoulder pads and American imperialist strength. But these are not the men and women who drive on the wrong side of the four-lane road and swarm the troubled starlets whenever the stoplight goes to red.

“Shudder” at ISM: gallery comprises the portraits of five photographers who work with celebrity. Michael Lavine hung out with the Nirvanas and the Soundgardens and the Pearl Jams. His celebrities are A-list, and much-loved cult figures (his website boasts Sarah Silverman and Strangers With Candy’s lovely Amy Sedaris), but his photos may be too slick, too Sears-ad sunny, for a gallery wall.

Jeremy and Clare Weiss are moodier, and shoot closer-up; rarely do they shoot against a flat white studio wall, but include panoramic backgrounds off in the distance, like the city-states of Raphael, seen tiny upon the far-off hills. They may be as posed as Lavine’s blemish-free portraits, but if they are then they deal in the illusion that they aren’t.

Patrick Fraser holds a middle ground; moody and close-up craggy, but pretending to be naturalist and imbued with the moral authority of the outdoors, while Dan Monick holds up the left end of the spectrum, lo-fi and dirty and punk underground.

ISM’s opening on Saturday will give you drinks and a photo booth. If Britney shows up, be friendly. Girl needs some kindness these days.

SHUDDER: CELEBRITY PORTRAITS TO PERSONAL PROJECTS ISM: GALLERY (IN KOO’S ART CENTER) | 540 E BROADWAY LONG BEACH 90802 | OPENING RECEPTION SAT 7-10PM | GALLERY OPEN BY APPOINTMENT ONLY | RSVP AT ISMCOMMUNITY.ORG/RSVP | FREE

Tags: art, celebrities, ism, koo's, Long Beach, photography