ART REVIEWS : Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Body Politic

The horde of movie-goers flooding theaters to see “Terminator 2” might experience a rude awakening if they checked out the current exhibition at the G. Ray Hawkins Gallery in Santa Monica. On view is “Arnold Schwarzenegger,” a visual essay on America’s No. 1 hero by British photographer and filmmaker George Butler. No, the body doesn’t disappoint--Schwarzenegger’s physique is inarguably astonishing--rather, it’s the philosophy of Arnie that is posted on labels throughout the gallery that causes the jaw to drop.

One particularly memorable quote finds him saying “I wish I could experience the feeling President Kennedy had speaking to 50,000 people at one time and having them cheer and scream and be in agreement with whatever he said.” This simple-minded desire is unsettling considering that Schwarzenegger is looking increasingly political with every passing year. One grows downright alarmed to discover that the adjoining label finds him declaring, “My relationship to power and authority is I’m all for it. People need somebody to tell them what to do.”

These quotes are drawn from Butler’s recently published book, “Arnold Schwarzenegger: A Portrait,” which covers 18 years in the life of the Austrian Oak. Chronicling his rise from Muscle Beach in Venice to the peak of the Hollywood film industry (he’s presently the highest-paid movie star in the world, the book informs us), these photos are essentially a meditation on human will, as Schwarzenegger’s metamorphosis is the product of nothing more than sheer, stubborn will.

On the evidence provided here, one deduces that this man spent the better part of two decades exercising around the clock. We see him at various points in his workout, grimacing, scantily clad (he wears nothing but a pair of briefs in most of the photos) and alone. Even when he’s surrounded by people, Schwarzenegger seems to exist within an invisible force field of isolation that separates him from others--perfection is obviously a lonely business. We see him greased, hairless and pumped up at competitions, and in strangely surreal close-ups. An image of his upper arm looks as though a large, rounded meat loaf has somehow been surgically grafted onto it--the massive muscle hovers there like some weird orb with a life of its own.

Butler is a competent photographer--his pictures are handsomely lit and composed--and he shoots Schwarzenegger with a combination of critical detachment and admiration. While Schwarzenegger’s can-do philosophy is indeed to be applauded, it’s harder to cheer for the fact that his phenomenal success stands as evidence that brute force is a highly valued quality in the late 20th Century.

Also on view is “Rendezvous,” a splendid group show featuring images of lovers by 22 photographers. Spanning 76 years and including diverse sensibilities ranging from Larry Clark to Andre Kertesz, this show seems stunningly subtle and complex when contrasted with the Schwarzenegger photos. It’s hard to single out a specific work, as every photograph on view is a treasure, but a Lisette Model image from 1940, “Sailor and Girl,” is a real knockout.

* G. Ray Hawkins Gallery, 910 Colorado Ave., Santa Monica, (213) 394-5558. To Aug. 17. Closed Sundays and Mondays.