Stefan Moses
Lady with newspaper in Cologne. Retired cellarman in the Munich Hofbräuhaus. Cleaning pans at the Hilton Hotel in Berlin. Fire station in Berlin.
1963. 1990
4 gelatin silver prints, printed 1997. From 34 x 28 cm (39.9 x 30.8 cm) to 36.3 x 26.9 cm (40.4 x 30.8 cm). Each signed, dated, titled and with photographer's stamps on the verso. - Each matted.
When he got commissioned by „Stern“ to take a photographic portrait of the people of the FRD in the mid 60s, Stefan Moses decided against classic photo reportage depicting people in their actual living environment but searched for new staging possibilities. “With the help of a light grey cloth, Moses places people that caught his interest in front of a neutral background, quasi removing them from the flow of frantic events for the moment of the photo. The effect is striking: The sitters suddenly get a sort of aura that snatches them from the fury of disappearance in two respects without presenting them in an exhibitionist manner. The trick of the cloth background increases the uniqueness of the person with the insignia of their respective jobs.” (cited after Harald Eggebrecht, in: Ulrich Pohlmann/Matthias Harder (ed.), Stefan Moses. Die Monographie. Fotografien 1947 bis heute, exhib.cat. Fotomuseum im Münchner Stadtmuseum, Munich 2002, p. 28f.).
Literature
Deutscher Sparkassen- und Giroverband (ed.), Stefan Moses. Deutsche Vita. Ein Bilderbuch, Passau 2006, ill. p. 99 (1 image)