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Thomas Ruff

German

b. 1958

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Thomas Ruff is a contemporary German photographer and prominent member of the Düsseldorf School. His broad oeuvre incorporates images of domestic interiors, austere portraits, blurred pornography, photograms, and found JPEGs which intend to spur the imagination rather than capture reality. “I think that historically photographs may have been made in a naive and honest way, when photographers believed in the ‘pencil of nature’ and recording what was in front of the camera,” he reflected. “But photography quickly came to be used in a prejudicial way, losing its innocence and consequently its ability to communicate.”

Born on February 10, 1958 in Zell am Harmersbach, Germany, Ruff studied under Bernd and Hilla Becher at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf during the late 1970s. Ruff continues to live and work in Düsseldorf, Germany. His works are held in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, Tate Gallery, Kunstmuseum Basel, and MoMA.