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Twayne Publishers, 1998.STEFAN MOSES
German
Born in 1928 in the Silesian town of Liegnitz, Stefan
Moses is one of the most important German photo-
graphers of the second half of the twentieth century.
In addition to his photographic features for maga-
zines, includingNeue Zeitung, Das Scho ̈nste, Revue,
magnum, and starting in 1960, also forStern,his
success was particularly due to his independent pro-
jects, in which he brought together concept and
candid photography and created an innovative vi-
sual language with a unique personal character.
Starting in the 1960s, he compiled books of portraits
and photo series, which had a broad influence,
includingManuel(1967),Transsibirische Eisenbahn
(Trans Siberian Railroad, 1979), Deutsche (Ger-
mans, 1980), Abschied und Anfang—Ostdeutsche
Portra ̈ts(A Farwell and a Beginning—East German
Portraits 1991), Jeder Mensch ist eine kleine Ge-
sellschaft(Each Person is a Small Society, 1998)
andDDR—ende mit wende(GDR—back from the
turning point, 1999).
Through today, he has remained true to the por-
trait as both a photographic genre and manifold
psychological portrait of German society. ‘‘Ger-
many and the Germans’’ has been at the core of
his lifelong work. His extensive series reflect the
social and cultural development of the Bundesrepu-
blik. The project,East German Portraitsfrom 1989
and 1990 could be considered the most important
photographic work about the process of German
reunification. His oeuvre, a ‘‘synonym for photogra-
phy in Germany,’’ as one critic described, constitu-
tes a significant contribution to the discussion
surrounding the issue of German identity.
For over five decades, Moses has been creating
portraits of the Germans in the stylistic tradition of
the ‘‘roving photographer.’’ His images—of old and
young, artists and intellectuals, poor and rich, their
homes and celebrations, organizations and schools—
have garnered him the role of the chronicler and
portrait photographer of German post-war society.
His approach is understandably simple. Ordinary
and prominent citizens in Cologne, Berlin, or Mu-
nich are depicted in front of a gray felt cloth that he
carries with him. The neutral background functions
like a stage, and the poses take on an emblematic
quality. The individual is removed from a familiar
environment, and this relativizes his or her social
standing. These typological portraits are individua-
lized studies of universal relevance—‘‘the shortest of
all operas ever written,’’ according to the German art
historian, Wolfgang Kemp.
Moses approaches his countrymen from both
East and West with analytical intuition and affec-
tionate warmth. His photographs demonstrate a
sensitive, curious, and inquisitive view of his con-
temporaries. With a profound understanding of
human nature, he studies the people he encounters
with great psychological sensibility, and he pene-
trates physiognomies in a way that builds on a
dialogue with the earlier systematic photo series
of August Sander and Irving Penn.
The list of people Moses has photographed reads
like awho’s whoof the German-speaking intellec-
tual and cultural elite: Theodor W. Adorno, Inge-
borg Bachmann, Ernst Bloch, Heinrich Bo ̈ll, Willy
Brandt, Hans Magnus Enzensberger, Max Frisch,
Gu ̈nter Grass, Walter Jens, Erich Ka ̈stner, Thomas
Mann, Ludwig Meidner, Bernhard Minetti, Alex-MOSES, STEFAN