The upcoming event at one of New York’s largest and international art galleries, Gagosian Gallery, features the work of artist Thomas Ruff.
Thomas Ruff, an artist, chooses to express himself with the medium of photography, though his work explores the limits and possibilities of that medium. Thomas Ruff uses multiple techniques for multiple projects in his photography. His techniques spanning from the modern 3D possibilities in photography and advanced digital manipulation, to dark room and development techniques that would have been used long ago in the 20th century, or 1970s.
As far as the subjects of Thomas Ruff’s photography, they vary as well and often include digitally manipulated NASA images of planets and the solar system, interior and shots of exterior architecture that challenge the viewer to see the structures in a new light, and an artistically rendered spin on pornography in which the images are abstracted with filters and blur, to suggest the more beautiful elements of the human body, without being explicit.
A big form for Thomas Ruff is 3D imagery. In the increasing popularity of 3D in film and television is perhaps where Thomas Ruff’s work became noticed, however Thomas Ruff’s use of 3D is well suited to create Pop Imagery, which in its loud, eye popping style, fits naturally to be seen in the 3D element. Imagine the old Warhol paintings, their bracing color and pleasurable obtrusiveness, can you imagine them in 3D? In my opinion such works of pop art are well suited to 3D, as it adds to the shock, pop experience of seeing a celebrity, or simply the vivid color and bright simplicity of some of his pop work. In terms of 3D, Thomas Ruff also has rendered some NASA shot interplanetary images and overlayed them with another color. Perhaps as an idea once cannot tell the value, however in person, seeing the 3D landscapes of the moon or mars and the stars surrounding them surely makes an impression.
Thomas Ruffs work with digitally manipulated stills from pornography have the surprising 
effect of shifting what might appear as smut into something more artful and calm. The digital glaze laid on top of a carefully selected still can bring out the shape, color, and innocence of exploration and the human body, as if one were looking at a soft, angelic sculpture fashioned by Michelangelo.
Thomas Ruff is based out of Dusseldorf, Germany.
