Wolfgang Tillmans

One of the most important photographers of his generation, Wolfgang Tillmans is known for his innovative and diverse approach to photography. Born in 1968 in Remscheid, Germany, Tillmans gained international recognition in the 1990s for his ability to blend genres, capturing everything from intimate portraits and still lifes to abstract compositions and large-scale installations.

Deeply influenced by artists who saw the world through screens, including Sigmar Polke, Gerhard Richter and Andy Warhol, Tillmans has worked to close the gap between painting and photography. As a teenager, he was fascinated by printed images and recalls experimenting with a photocopier that could enlarge greyscale photographs in increments up to 400 percent. ‘For me that was a moment of initiation, and the way that I actually came to photography: in the realisation that, apparently, through other means besides my own hands, meaning can be instilled through the mechanics and in the material itself,’ he explains.

Tillmans’ early work was closely with the youth and club culture of the 1990s, where he documented the vibrant energy of the era. His intimate portraits of friends and celebrities, including iconic images of Kate Moss, established him as a leading photographer of his generation. However, his practice quickly expanded to include a broad range of subjects, from everyday scenes to abstract explorations of light and colour.

The artist’s celebrated series Freischwimmer occupy pivotal territory in Tillmans’ ongoing exploration of the photographic medium. These abstract, large-scale works appear to be photographs of light itself but are created in a dark room without a camera by manipulating photographic paper during the development process. Using his hands as stencils, Tillmans directs light onto photographic paper, manipulating it across the surface to form incalculable fusions of colour and line.

Tillmans’ work has been exhibited globally, with significant retrospectives at major institutions such as Wolfgang Tillmans: To look without fear (2022–23) at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. In 2000 Tillmans was awarded the prestigious Turner Prize — the first photographer and first non-British artist to win the accolade.