"But 'accepting a picture as a picture' neutrally, dispassionately and without passing judgment – that is no easy matter. Thomas Ruff's portraits are unsettling simply on account of their immense scale. Every detail, every pore, every pimple on these large-size faces is visible. We would never stare so brashly at a living person. Ruff's photographs dispense with this barrier of modesty. We stare at the persons photographed – and they stare right back. However, their distanced gaze in the pictures does not infest us. On the contrary, it awakens our emotions. We like or dislike the characters. Some faces appeal to us, others less so. And then we begin to think about who these people could be. What are their occupations? Where do they come from? What is the story behind them?"
http://deutsche-boerse.com/dbag/dispatch/en/kir/gdb_navigation/about_us/30_Art_Collection/40_artists/58_ruff