Masks have been around for as long as humankind itself, in all societies, cultures and contexts. They’re used for a huge range of different purposes – from rituals and traditional ceremonies to daily routines. There are masks that are completely functional and others that communicate a role, like the masks in Japanese and ancient Greek theatre. The one thing they all have in common is that they function as an interface. An interface between life and death, between reality and surreality. And now, we are experiencing masks as a new kind of interface between our own, individual body and society.
Thomas Rusch born 1962 in Freiburg, Germany. His first notable career achievement was a prize winning series of photos for „Stern“ magazine with backstage portraits of Leonard Bernstein, Yehudi Menuhin among others. Following from that he worked some years for „Stern“ doing reportages and cover photos, several awarded prizes. In 1999 he moved to Paris focussing on fashion and beauty photography. In addition to his work as a commercial and portrait photographer, he has regular exhibitions in galleries. Some years ago he has moved back to Berlin focussing on fine art photography.
Awards 4x Art Directors Club, Germany,
Art Directors Club of Europe,
SPD Award, New York, FWA Red Dot Award,
Canon ProFashional Photo Award,
Kodak Portrait Award,
2x Kodak European Award.
