Inside the Studio of Thomas Struth.

In Berlin, the studio of Thomas Struth unfolds as a space where artistic practice, concentration and observation become inseparable. Originally commissioned for AD Spain, Daniel Schäfer Studio visited the artist to photograph his working environment and accompany a conversation with Cristina Jiménez, documenting the relationship between artist, space and process.

Known as one of the most influential photographers of the Düsseldorf School, Thomas Struth has continuously explored the relationship between image-making and the structures shaping contemporary experience. Moving between museum spaces, urban environments and technological landscapes, his work investigates what is seen, and the conditions through which seeing itself takes place.

The photographic series developed by Daniel Schäfer Studio moves through the artist’s studio, artworks, materials and architectural fragments, tracing the relationship between artistic practice and the space in which it unfolds. The encounter also introduces another dimension: a photographer portraying another photographer within the place where images themselves are conceived and constructed. The images from the series construct a visual narrative positioned between editorial documentation and personal interpretation, exploring the relationship between artistic process, and the spatial conditions through which images emerge. Through this perspective, the studio itself appears less as a backdrop and more as a space of thought, reflexion and production.

“When you have a blue sky and you photograph in black and white, the blue sky doesn’t matter. If you have it in colour, the blue is dominant and it’s an intense element in the photograph. Because when you look at it, the sky, it’s air. But in the photograph it’s a blue colour. It’s blue paper. So it’s a different thing. That’s why, when I want to make a print now with the blue sky, my aim in the printing process is to make sure it looks like air. And not like blue paint. It’s a very fine line.”

Thomas Struth


PROJECT INFORMATION.
Commissioned for Architectural Digest Spain.
Photography © Daniel Schäfer Studio
Interview by Cristina Jiménez
Published in AD Spain.