PHOTO:Thomas Ruff-New Works

Thomas Ruff, press++28.19, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/LondonIn his approach to photography, Thomas Ruff explores a breadth of themes that is reflected in the range of techniques he employs: analogue and digital exposures taken by the artist exist in his practice alongside computer generated imagery, photographs from scientific archives, and pictures culled and manipulated from newspapers, magazines, and the Internet.

By Dimitris Lempesis
Photo: David Zwirner Gallery Archive

Instead of photographing our everyday reality, Ruff concentrates on the depiction of photographic reality. His approach is based on the methods of so-called “researcher-artists.” In each of his series, Ruff uses the medium of photography as an instrument of systematic analysis that can be used to aid in the examination of social, political and aesthetic aspects of image production. The solo exhibition “New Works” by Thomas Ruff at David Zwirner in London is a continuation of his “press++” series, which he debuted at David Zwirner in New York (31/3-30/4/16). While the earlier exhibition focused on space exploration, the new reflects a broader variety of themes, and includes space exploration, planes, cars, car crashes, and Hollywood stars. The back of a photo is where newspaper editors scribbled notes about how to crop an image or where to place it in the article, it’s where newswires often typed a caption. While referencing German Dada artists’ photomontages from the 1920s, Ruff reinvents the medium of photography by first scanning the front and back of those press photographs, which he has been collecting over several years and combined the two sides using digital tools. Interested equally in the subject matter of both sides of the photographs he created seamless montages of image and text, in the process compromising the integrity of the former as well as adding relevant context. The overlap causes each side to lose its intended information and merge into a new image altogether. “press++” series reveal more about the history of these images than the front of the photos. With the addition of the editors’ scribbling, the images remind viewers not only of the earlier days of newspapers and magazines but also of the people who kept the world informed. This series continues Ruff’s long-standing interest in the deconstruction of the image and the new structures of photography following digital technology. It relates to earlier series by the artist including “Newspaper Photographs” (1990-91), and “jpegs” (2004-07).

Info: : David Zwirner Gallery, 24 Grafton Street, London, Duration: 18/11/16-5/1/17, Days & Hours: tue-Sat 10:00-18:00, www.davidzwirner.com

Thomas Ruff, press++09.26, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London
Thomas Ruff, press++09.26, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London

 

 

Thomas Ruff, press++70.01, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London
Thomas Ruff, press++70.01, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London

 

 

Thomas Ruff, press++01.38, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London
Thomas Ruff, press++01.38, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London

 

 

Thomas Ruff, press++08.30, 2015, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London
Thomas Ruff, press++08.30, 2015, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London

 

 

Thomas Ruff, press++09.28, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London
Thomas Ruff, press++09.28, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London

 

 

Thomas Ruff, press++65.11, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London
Thomas Ruff, press++65.11, 2016, Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner New York/London