There are two notable portrait photography shows running together at the Fenimore Art Museum and they couldn't be more different. On the main floor, with some fanfare, are the rock and roll commercial portraits by Herb Ritts, who shot a slew of classic images in the 1980s and '90s, including Rolling Stone covers. Downstairs, almost hidden behind the impressive collection of Native American art, are large camera portraits of Indians by Will Wilson, made in the last decade.
For many, the images of Ritts will be familiar. His approach was simple, working usually in black and white, sometimes with just a basic Nikon (also on view) and his trademark California light. High profile musicians are posed in dramatic ways to show, according to quotes by Ritts, who they really are.
For the most part these are slick, refined, highly self-conscious photographs. With the likes of Prince, Sinead, Springsteen, Dylan, and so on, that might be all that is possible. The show is a who's who of the pop artists of the time, along with a couple of guitars and a whole room devoted to Madonna.
From all accounts, Ritts was devoted and at ease, and he had a way of connecting with his big ego subjects, mixing studio backdrops and real world settings. You can glimpse his working method in a few contact sheets, giving alternate views.
The show is big, surveying his whole career, including some color work and music videos. It's dynamic stuff. If it is often superficially glossy, about pose and posturing, it is also about an effective projection to the viewer. That's you and me, three decades later.
Downstairs, the penetrating gazes and conflicting cues in the posed portraits of Native Americans by Will Wilson coerce a whole different kind of looking. First of all, you'll not recognize the subjects. No soundtrack will flip on in your head. These...
