Chromogenic print
18 x 18 inches

Tyler Shields’ Toast (2025) distills celebration, fragility, and impermanence into a single stark frame. In the photograph, two coupe glasses meet in a sharp, crystalline clink - one held by a man’s hand, the other by a woman’s hand adorned with polished nails. From their point of contact, liquid spills downward in a frozen cascade, breaking the illusion of perfection and reminding the viewer of the fleeting nature of indulgence.

The black-and-white palette heightens the drama, transforming the simple act of a toast into an iconic gesture. The contrast between the masculine and feminine hands reinforces Shields’ exploration of duality - strength and elegance, control and surrender - while the escaping liquid captures the inevitability of loss amid celebration.

Toast exemplifies Shields’ ability to take familiar rituals and strip them down to their symbolic core. At once glamorous and sobering, the image underscores the tension between decadence and ephemerality, turning a moment of joy into a meditation on time, beauty, and the cost of desire.