Why did you become a photographer?
I was always interested in art, but couldn’t decide which media.
In my early 20ies I got in contact with a photo camera,
which was the perfect field of study for me.
What can give you inspiration?
I’m not the person, who is inspired by spending a lot of time in my studio.
Usually I develop my ideas on travels, it changes my point of view and finally gives me an inspiration for my work.
What is the quality you most like in a person?
Tolerance and humor
Which talent would you most like to have?
Speaking more foreign languages.
Where would you most like to live?
It changes from time to time: Italy, Los Angeles, Hamburg, Berlin.
But in general I’m quite satisfied with my hometown Düsseldorf.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
As a boy, I didn’t liked my curly hair, but these days I wish to have a better time management.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
In general I’m satisfied with my complete body of work and hope to continue it.
What do you most value in your friends?
Tolerance and humor.
What is your most treasured possession?
I guess it’s the memory of the past, together with some ephemera, which reminds me of these moments.
What would you have been if you did not become a photographer?
I was also fascinated by mathematics, maybe this could be an alternative.
What fascinates you in your work?
It’s a complex profession, I’m getting in contact with fascinating people on my travels, I’m able to work in a creative environment, express my ideas and I do have also my silent moments in my studio.
A perfect mix.
Polish-born photographer Josef Schulz has an extraordinary body of work to his name. The 48-year-old’s imagery deals predominantly with mundane man-made objects iconicised by his lens. But his images aren’t quite as simple as they first seem. Using digital manipulation Josef transforms his originals into familiar yet otherworldly scenes, removing the typography from commercial signage and transplanting urban architecture from its cluttered surroundings into bare backgrounds. His Übergang series saw him traipsing across Europe documenting abandoned military and national checkpoints, subtly blurring their backgrounds in post-production to remove them from their original context – which gives them the appearance of being captured in a different era entirely.
