Thomas Ruff
German, born 1958
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Portrait (R. Eisch), 1999
Color print, edition 4/4
82 5/8 x 65 inches (209.9 x 165.1 cm)
Sarah Norton Goodyear Fund, 2001
On View in Looking Out and Looking In: A Selection of Contemporary Photography, January 19–May 26, 2013
Thomas Ruff believes that photography can show only the surface appearance of a person or thing. It is incapable of indicating anything below that surface, such as personality, mood, or meaning.
In the series of photographic portraits Ruff made of friends while studying in Dusseldorf, the figures are simply objects, represented rigidly frontal, with a neutral background, and often in pastel colors. They resemble large-scale passport photographs, taken with a flash that resulted in bright and impersonal light. Ruff’s friends looked directly at the camera when he snapped the pictures, helping to create the effect. As the artist said, “The people have to know what my portraits are like in order to behave in such a way that the result is like one of my portraits.” He was once asked if his goal was to elevate the ordinary person to a kind of celebrity status. His response was that he was representing his own interests: “My friends are more important to me than any president.”
Related Lesson Plan
What’s Fair? Can You Decide? (For Grades 3–12)
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Today
Wednesday
May 22
| 10:30 am | Art with Artists: Toddler Art Class (For Ages 3–4 with a Parent or Caregiver)—CANCELLED |
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