Portrait (Pia Fries)
- Artist
- Thomas Ruff, German, born 1958
- Date
- 1988
- Material
- Chromogenic print
- made in
- Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen state, Germany, Europe
- Classification
- Photographs
- Current Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- image: 62 1/2 x 47 1/4 in. (158.8 x 120 cm)
framed: 82 3/4 x 65 1/4 x 1 5/8 in. (210.2 x 165.7 x 4.1 cm) - Credit Line
- Friends Endowment Fund
- Rights
- © Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
- Object Number
- 5:1991
NOTES
In this imposing portrait, Thomas Ruff offers his subject in a direct and frontal pose. His composition is reminiscent of passport photographs and mug shots, with the woman’s face evenly lit and holding an inexpressive gaze. Ruff’s work questions whether photography can reproduce anything other than the surface of things. Despite the monumental scale of the print and the tremendous amount of detail captured here, this work seems less about the subject and more about photography itself, its process, formats, and history.
Provenance
Galerie Ghislaine Hussenot, Paris, France
Glenn-Dash Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- 1990
Elaine Horwitch Galleries, Scottsdale, AZ [1]
1990-1991
Greenberg Gallery of Art, St. Louis, MO, acquired from the Elaine Horwitch Galleries
1991 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from the Greenberg Gallery of Art [2]
Notes:
This provenance is based on email correspondence dated May 11, 2011, between research assistant Ann-Maree Walker and Courtney Flynn of the Greenberg Van Doren Gallery [SLAM document files]. Supporting documents are noted.
[1] Ownership by Elaine Horwitch Galleries is further confirmed by the presence of an Elaine Horwitch Galleries label on verso.
[2]Minutes of the Collections Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, March 6, 1991.
Glenn-Dash Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- 1990
Elaine Horwitch Galleries, Scottsdale, AZ [1]
1990-1991
Greenberg Gallery of Art, St. Louis, MO, acquired from the Elaine Horwitch Galleries
1991 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from the Greenberg Gallery of Art [2]
Notes:
This provenance is based on email correspondence dated May 11, 2011, between research assistant Ann-Maree Walker and Courtney Flynn of the Greenberg Van Doren Gallery [SLAM document files]. Supporting documents are noted.
[1] Ownership by Elaine Horwitch Galleries is further confirmed by the presence of an Elaine Horwitch Galleries label on verso.
[2]Minutes of the Collections Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, March 6, 1991.