Thomas Ruff
Zell am Harmersbach (Germany), 10.02.1958
German photographer who lives and works in Düsseldorf. He has been described as "a master of edited and reimagined images. In the summer of 1974, Ruff acquired his first camera and after attending an evening class in the basic techniques of photography he started to experiment, taking shots similar to those he had seen in many amateur photography magazines. During his studies in Düsseldorf and inspired by the lectures of Benjamin HD Buchloh, Ruff developed his method of conceptual serial photography. Ruff began photographing landscapes, but while he was still a student he transitioned to the interiors of German living quarters, with typical features of the 1950s to 1970s. This was followed by similar views of buildings and portraits of friends and acquaintances from the Düsseldorf art and music scene, initially in small formats. Ruff studied photography from 1977 to 1985 with Bernd and Hilla Becher at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf Art Academy).
ARTWORKS
LIBRARY
EXHIBITIONS
Thomas Ruff
l.m.v.d.r. 2
Krefelder Kunstmuseen, Krefeld, Germany, 2000

pages 48
first edition
dimensions 24 × 30 cm, softcover
language German
ISBN 3-926530-89-8
Thomas Ruff
Zeitungsfotos
Bookhorse, Zurich, Switzerland, 2014

pages 800
first edition
dimensions 19.4 × 13.8 cm, softcover
language German / English
ISBN 978-3-9523391-5-2
Thomas Ruff
Nudes
Schirmer / Mosel, Munchen, Paris, London, 2003
Frank Wynne
pages 160
first edition
dimensions 29.5 × 23 cm, hardcover with jacket
language German / English
ISBN 3-8296-0041-0
Thomas Ruff
Thomas Ruff
Skira, Milan, Italy, 2009
Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev
pages 312
first edition
dimensions 28.5 × 24.5 cm, hardcover
language English
ISBN 978-88-6130-297-6
Thomas Ruff
The grammar of photography
Edizioni della Meridiana, Italy, 2006

pages 160
first edition
dimensions 28 × 24 cm, softcover
language Italian
ISBN 88-6007048-1
Thomas Ruff
Andere Porträts + 3D
Hatje Cantz, Ostfidern, Germany, 1995

pages 60
first edition
dimensions 28 × 21 cm, softcover
language German
ISBN 3-89322-772-5
Thomas Ruff
Porträts
Walther König, Köln, Germany, 1988

pages 56
first edition
dimensions 24 × 17 cm, softcover
language German
ISBN 3-88375-078-6