Tipologías, archivos y fotografía en el arte alemán de posguerra: Thomas Ruff y la identidad del retrato fotográfico

The article examines the use of photography in relation to the function of «typologies» and to the concept of “archive” in the photographic practice of the German artist Thomas Ruff. The issues assessed by this study concern Ruff ’s procedure and artistic strategy: the organization of the photographic material into types of images that form series of groups. Furthermore it attempts to see how the concept of “objectivity” is redefined in these types of images and how these types establish a new relationship with the observer posing issues regarding the use of image in contemporary society.