Wolfgang Tillman's photography art: focus and a sense of vision meets feeling for a perfect moment

Wolfgang Tillmans , recognized as one of the world's most famous photographers, has been engaged with the art of photography . Since then, he has undergone a decidedly unconventional, yet fascinating development, exploring "the ultimate depths of photography."

It began with everyday snapshots, with a keen eye for the essential in the inessential, perhaps just of his mother's bedroom and kitchen. Even then, Tillmans was interested in different forms of layout and collected photographs of people who could express something through their images.

It's so easy to become an idol..

Topics from outside the immediate world quickly came into play. As a 15-year-old language student in England, Tillmans was exposed to English youth culture and the leading style and music magazines in England, for which he would soon work. After graduating from high school at 19, Tillmans moved from his hometown of Remscheid to Hamburg in 1987.

He moved in Hamburg's emerging rave scene , continued to photograph, received commissions from the English magazine "iD" and Hamburg scene magazines, became a recognized portraitist of the ravers and was invited to solo exhibitions in Hamburg cultural centers – and was a financially independent photographer before he really realized it himself.

Tillmans wasn't satisfied with his success as a visual reflection of nightlife; he demanded more from himself and from photography, and from 1990 to 1992 he studied at the Bournemouth and Poole College of Art and Design. In 1992 he moved to London, in 1994 to New York, and in 1996 he returned to London with the painter and photographer Jochen Klein, who had by then become his partner. Always with his camera, always searching for subjects.

In those early nineties, Tillmans photographed all his friends and other young people in his immediate surroundings, and these photographs made him famous.

His photographs were considered trendsetting; the images of the European Gay Pride in London (1992) or the Love Parade in Berlin (1992) were regarded as important historical documents and documentation of current social trends.

Wolfgang Tillmans became the chronicler of his generation , his work was published in all relevant magazines, and he was well paid; life went smoothly.

The scene, which Tillmans captured so impressively and in such detail, was not without reason a celebration to the point of unconsciousness; at that time, AIDS still an almost completely uncontrolled threat, and Tillmans' partner Klein died from it in 1997.

… but doesn't have to stay there

Tillmans had certainly fulfilled his assigned position as photographic reporter of the scene people and the rebellious to bewildered youth of that time with extraordinary artistic brilliance:

Photo series such as those by his friends Lutz and Alex (1992) are certainly rightly considered icons of photography and at the same time a very accurate look at the zeitgeist of the 1990s, and during this time he tried out the most diverse photographic practices and expanded his work into the most diverse genres.

But not to be forever limited to scrutinizing youth in clubs and the gay scene; Tillmans made and still makes “pictures to understand the world,” and the world is bigger than the night streets and the path to one's own style is longer.

Especially from 1997 onwards, numerous photo books were produced; in addition to the theme of “homosexuality and gender” , Tillmans worked on the artistic photographic recording of astronomical phenomena and still lifes, landscapes and sky views and unusual perspectives, oblique aerial photographs and inverted church vaults, always aesthetic, mostly surprising and not only occasionally disturbing.

With the same creativity and joy in independent, often new orientation, Tillmans approaches the presentation of his work results: Tillmans stages his photographs – in different formats, in different sizes, so that entire walls become carefully composed photo installations.

The photos are not left to their own devices in conveying the intended expression; they are supported by photocopies, printed newspaper pages, glossy magazine images, and are presented with precise calculation, not always in the usual vertical orientation, but at an angle, in the middle of the room in a large table installation, as an arrangement in a display case.

Tillman's photos are alive, they are in motion, they constantly take on their task of recognizing the world in ever new contexts.

As the titles tell us…

Better than any description, the names of Wolfgang Tillman's various solo exhibitions illustrate the meaning and the search in his work when presented chronologically:

In 1988, the focus was on “Approaches” (Café Gnosa, Hamburg), while in 1996, a title proclaimed “Whoever dares love lives tomorrow” (Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg), and another laid out “Folds” (Galerie Buchholz, Cologne). In 1998, “I didn't inhale” (Chisenhale Gallery, London) was intended less to expose the hypocrisy of the world than to create a world in which the artist and creator of the title would gladly live (or so one commentator suggests).

In 1999, “Fruiciones” (“Delights”, Museo Nacional Reina Sofia, Espacio Uno, Madrid) was featured, as well as “Soldiers” (Neuer Aachener Kunstverein) and “Saros” (Galerie Buchholz, Cologne), an astronomical period model for predicting solar and lunar eclipses.

In 2001 and 2002, “Science Fiction / to be content here and now” (with Isa Genzken , Museum Ludwig, Cologne) and various supervisions followed: “Supervision” (Deichtorhallen, Hamburg) “Vue d'en Haut” (Palais de Tokyo, Paris), “Veduta dall'alto” (“Elevated”, Castello di Rivoli, Museo d'arte contemporanea, Rivoli, Turin).

“If one thing matters, everything matters” , (“if one thing is important, everything matters”, Tate Britain, London) was noted in 2003, followed by a “View from Above” (“View from above”, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark) and in 2004 the “Freischwimmer” (Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery, Tokyo).

presented the Berlin Polish market at the time of the opening of the Berlin Wall in “Markt” “truth study center ” (Meureen Paley, London), which in 2006 certified the “Freedom from the Known” (Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago).

“Bali” opened our eyes to the fact that the possibility of worldwide information dissemination does not necessarily improve the quality of the information, but is used by profit-hungry and narrow-minded people to impose their deceitful dream worlds, prejudices and dogmas on the whole world.

“Lighter” invites the audience on an extensive journey through Tillman’s artistic history of the last 20 years, a diverse and exciting, indeed exhaustive show that clearly demonstrates that Tillman’s curiosity about the rest of the world and his empathy for the rest of the world have not diminished with age.

In “Zacheta, Encouragement” (Zacheta National Art Gallery, Warsaw), in which Tillmans presents a configuration of works specially assembled for the Warsaw exhibition spaces – not unusual, he always does this – he takes up the theme of “Bali” again: Themes and motifs that have dominated Tillmans’ work since the turn of the millennium are shown.

Selected photographs by Wolfgang Tillmans on Pinterest

During this period, Tillmans increasingly turned against the absolute claim to truth that ideologies and religions want to impose on his medium in his work, and he increasingly urged viewers to distrust their own prejudices when looking at the world.

The exhibition adopted the name of the traditional Warsaw exhibition venue with a specific intention: Tillmans wants to encourage visitors to trust their own eyes and instincts.

In 2013, “Silver” presented for the first time at Galerie Buchholz in Berlin, a body of work Tillmans had been working on for over a decade, and in London, “Central Nervous System” launched at Gallery Maureen Paley. Silver does indeed contain silver, but above all, it's a veritable explosion of color, and the central nervous system is part of the human being, and the human being is part of this exhibition.

We won't reveal any more about these newer projects here, so as not to spoil the fun: If you missed the 2013 exhibitions, you can view an endless series of pictures from these exhibitions at your leisure on the artist's website.

Direct link to Silver: Image link , you can access the central nervous system via Image link .

Tillman's art doesn't stay in the gallery

After Tillmans' beginnings, it's actually clear: Wolfgang Tillmans is not a photo artist who only lets himself be admired in exhibitions and celebrated at openings, but he does more, is more involved, has more ideas.

In 2001, Tillmans participated in a competition held by the city of Munich to design an AIDS memorial at Sendlinger Tor “Sendlinger Tor” subway station .

In 2002, Tillmans compiled footage of mice living in the London Underground into a music video for the “Pet Shop Boys” , to accompany the single “Home & Dry” .

Would you like to see the mice dance? Here you go:

In 2006, Tillmans opened his non-commercial exhibition space “Between Bridges” in London with a retrospective of the work of New York artist and activist David Wojnarowicz. Tillmans had become aware of Wojnarowicz through his appearance in the film “Silence = Death” (Rosa von Praunheim, 1990) and through his writings. Wojnarowicz died in 1992 from AIDS-related complications and is among the artists to whom Tillmans intends to dedicate the gallery: in his view, underappreciated artists, especially those with political concerns.

Since 2007, Tillmans has lived alternately in London and Berlin, and now the good news for Berliners and visitors to Berlin: “Between Bridges” has moved to Berlin, to Keithstrasse in Schöneberg (for visitors to Berlin: this is a few minutes' walk from the legendary Kaufhaus des Westens department store), and opened in January 2014, more below.

The art experts are arranging

Tillman's work is incredibly diverse; he has approached photography from every conceivable angle, through constant experimentation and ever-new ideas. This is too chaotic for art experts, who categorize his work into sections, clearly defining the stages of its development

The documentaries on the scene and youth culture are usually summarized as beginnings in which Tillmans distinguished himself as an exceptional photographic biographer of his time from about 1987 to about 1995.

He is then granted a development period until the turn of the millennium, with study and experimentation and the creation of a new worldview in the presentation of photographs.

From 2000 onwards, Tillmans' work became more abstract, pushing the boundaries of photography further with haptic approaches and the incorporation of three-dimensional space. He also explored the chemistry of photography, creating works in the darkroom without a camera, resulting in entirely new image structures. Consequently, "abstract" and "concrete" work merged, and photographic paper, in a consistent re-examination of the subject matter, became the object of photography itself.

From 2006 onwards, a reorientation can be observed: Tillmans begins with large-format works, for which he uses photocopies as source material, and replaces the previously usual presentation with the table works of the “truth study center” .

With his journey around the world, during which he took photographs for his exhibition and book project “New World” (on display since 2009), Tillmans finally embraced digital photography, having used his “Contax” (analog 35mm SLR camera) almost exclusively since his early days. This finally marks Tillmans' entry into the world of new technology, which he had resisted for so long…

The sequence is certainly correct in principle, anyone who has observed Wolfgang Tillmans for a longer period of time will agree, but Tillmans cannot simply be categorized into a nice, orderly sequence: He already experimented with photocopies when he worked as a telephone operator in the municipal AIDS support organization in Hamburg, and he demonstrably experimented and collected knowledge and photos even before his “beginnings” as a documentarian of youth culture.

He studied precisely during the time he “People en Masse” , experiments with abstraction have always been present in his photos, just as playing with formats is nothing new to him, and although he used a digital camera for the shots on his world trip, that doesn't mean his Contax cameras can retire: When Tillmans describes his view of the built-in monitor in 2012 as the “complete upside-down of the psychology of photography, which has always been a dialogue between photographer, object and the imaginary image that one imagines, thinks, hopes for”, he obviously feels something is missing with digital cameras.

Wolfgang Tillman's development unfolded in the way life usually does: much happens while planning, many ideas are touched upon, some pursued and then taken up again at some point, and many projects change during the work on them.

Upwards, unstoppable

One development in Wolfgang Tillman's life has been quite consistent: the rise to ever greater fame, and consequently, ever greater appreciation.

In retrospect, this makes sense, as photography students often say, who typically admired Tillman's photographs covering a wide range of topics early in their studies:

“I had always wanted to create portraits (landscape shots, abstract paintings, photos of unusual arrangements…) with a very specific artistic expression, which I never managed to achieve, and then I saw a portrait (landscape shot, abstract painting, photo of an unusual arrangement…) by Wolfgang Tillmans, and he captured exactly what I wanted to express in the picture.”

Not only photography students noticed Tillman's exceptional talent and unwavering accuracy, but also many critics, gallery owners, and their customers.

Perhaps the best proof of Tillman's outstanding quality, however, is that in 2000 he was awarded the Turner Prize by London's Tate Gallery , arguably the most important European prize for contemporary art.

Exhibitions and awards, quite a few of them

Tillmans' first solo exhibitions took place in Hamburg and his hometown starting in 1988, at Café Gnosa, Front, Fabrik-Foto-Forum, and the Remscheid City Library. These were followed in 1991 by the Grauwert Gallery and in 1992 by the PPS. Galerie FC Gundlach, still in Hamburg. Exhibitions in Frankfurt, Zurich, and London followed in 1993, and in Paris and New York in 1994. From 1995 to 1999, Tillmans had nearly 30 solo exhibitions worldwide, and from 2000 to 2012, over 70 solo exhibitions.

In addition, Tillmans participated in around 350 group exhibitions, also all over the world, and received a few more awards than the Turner Prize:

• 1995 the Ars Viva Art Prize of Böttcherstraße, Bremen
• In 2001, she received an Honorary Fellowship from The Arts Institute at Bournemouth for the design of the AIDS Memorial Sendlinger Tor, Munich
• 2009 Culture Prize of the German Society for Photography
• Since 2009, Tillmans has been an “Artist Trustee” of the Board of Tate, London

From around 2005, Tillman's works conquered the really big museums, in solo exhibitions , e.g. the Hammer Museum Los Angeles, the Hirschhorn Museum Washington DC, the Kunstsammlung NRW, K21, Düsseldorf, the Kunstverein München, the Moderna Museet Stockholm, the MoMA in New York, the Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo, the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, the Nationalgalerie im Hamburger Bahnhof Berlin, the Pinakothek der Moderne München, the PS1 Contemporary Art Center New York and the Tate Britain London.

After-effects are certain

Tillmans started passing on his knowledge early on:

• From 1998 to 1999, at just 30 years old, he held a visiting professorship at the University of Fine Arts in Hamburg.
• From 2003 to 2006 he taught as a professor of interdisciplinary art at the State Academy of Fine Arts – Städelschule in Frankfurt am Main.
• He has been a member of the Academy of Arts, Berlin, since 2012.
• In 2013 he was appointed a Member of the Royal Academy of Arts in London.

Where Tillmans teaches, the lecture halls are full, not only because the “star of photography” is good at passing on his knowledge, but also because he is highly valued by the students for his pleasant, calm manner.

Wolfgang Tillmans current

Tillmans is exhibiting in his (partially) adopted home of Berlin until the end of 2014:

From November 8, 2013 to December 31, 2014, Wolfgang Tillmans' "Extension of the Combat Zone" with paintings from 1968 to 2000 can be seen in the new National Gallery in Berlin.

A small preview is available at the image link .

Wolfgang Tillman's website is always up-to-date , and it is designed to be as user-friendly as is rarely seen on an artist's website (and indeed on any website in general).

The first thing you notice is that someone who knows their craft was at work here – the website appears immediately after entering the name Wolfgang Tillmans into the search engine! Before Wiki (nothing against Wiki, important and great, it's just astonishing), two pages before the first video on DuGlotz, four pages before the first attack by the Amazons on the searcher's wallet… can Wolfgang Tillmans actually perform magic, conjure annoying websites with telepathic photo beams deep into the internet? Forgive me, the author's imagination is running wild; a few days spent with Wolfgang Tillmans simply puts you in a good mood…

Secondly, the pleasantly simple AND readable, eye-friendly, factual, and goal-oriented design stands out (take a look at some artist websites, and you'll know what I mean); thirdly, the site offers a lot:

Right at the top left of the page (finally designed to match our viewing habits, not somewhere on the right edge or at the bottom) you will find the “exhibition calendar”, the current exhibition calendar.

Under “new installation views” you can see what is currently happening in the Tillmans world; what I mean by “see” is that you can click on any of the listed topics and view a lot more “views”.

In the “installation views archive” you will find an archive that gives you insights into an incredible 34 past exhibitions , and under “book downloads” you will actually be able to do exactly that:

You can download a total of eight of the books compiled by Tillmans as PDFs , including some that are long out of print. Here's the list to whet your appetite:

• Zachęta Encouragement, Zachęta Narodowa Galeria Sztuki, North Rhine-Westphalia Art Collection, Düsseldorf, 2011
• Wolfgang Tillmans, Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, Brochure, 2010
• Wolfgang Tillmans. London: Serpentine Gallery, Koenig Books London, 2010
• Wako Book 4. Tokyo: Wako Works of Art, 2008, Wako Works of Art
• Why We Must Provide HIV Treatment Information. Photography by Wolfgang Tillmans. London: HIV i-base, 2007
• Wolfgang Tillmans. Los Angeles. New Haven and London: Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, and Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, 2006
• Wako Book 3. Tokyo: Wako Works of Art, 2004
• Wako Book 2. Tokyo: Wako Works of Art, 2001

Wolfgang Tillmans' Collector's Edition, published by Hatje Cantz, is available for €800. It features a comprehensive overview of his work with 2,400 photographs taken for the Tate exhibition. The Collector's Edition showcases his entire artistic development from his beginnings in 1978 to 2003. Further information can be found at Hatje Cantz: Wolfgang Tillmans , where a number of other exclusive Tillmans art books are also available.

The menu item “all books” contains exactly that: a simple list of all artist books/catalogues created by Tillmans to date (no distinction is made, nor would it make much sense, as Tillmans compiles his catalogs himself with great care and attention to detail). Here again, service information, publisher, ISBN, and, where applicable, download link are naturally included. It's definitely worth taking a look at this list – there's no such thing as boredom or repetition in Tillmans' books, just as there isn't in his photographs.

The menu item “betweenbridges.net” conveniently opens the website in a new window. There you'll find the address, opening hours, and the current exhibition, with upcoming events listed at the bottom of the page. “Lectures” leads to readings, with the manuscripts available as downloadable PDFs. “Interviews” provides access to interviews, also available for immediate download, as are the “essays & reviews” (and if you know Tillmans a little by now, you'll know he didn't just pick the nicest ones) on the following page.

Only the “biography/bibliography” is not available for download with a click; the artist is probably too modest for that. However, the clear and minimalist design makes it easy to activate the entire page and copy it into a text format.

Are you wondering how someone could get so worked up about a well-designed, easy-to-read, and user-friendly website? Then you probably work in a profession where you don't spend hours every day researching online…

Many art lovers reading this article will surely remember the documenta 13 website and how “nice” it was to get information there.

One final tip: When you visit Wolfgang Tillmans' website, set aside some time; you'll almost certainly end up spending a while there…

You can learn more about Wolfgang Tillmans' life in the article “Wolfgang Tillmans: A Life for a Picture of the World” .