Quotes by
August Sander

In photography there are no shadows that cannot be illuminated.

Photography has no dark sides !

Nothing seemed to me more appropriate than to project an image of our time with absolute fidelity to nature by means of photography… Let me speak the truth in all honesty about our age and the people of our age.

Therefore, let me in honesty speak the truth about our epoch and people.

I never made a person look bad. They do that themselves. The portrait is your mirror. It’s you.

If I, August Sander, a man in good physical and emotional health, purport to see things as they are and not as they should or could be, then I hope I will be forgiven, for I cannot do otherwise. I have been a photographer for 30 years and have dedicated myself to my work with all the devotion that I have to give, the path I have chosen has varied, but it has taught me to recognise my mistakes. The exhibition in the Cologne Art Gallery represents the results of my research, and I hope I am on the right track. Nothing is more abhorrent to me than sugary-sweet photography full of pretence, poses, and gimmickry. For this reason, I have allowed myself to tell the truth about our times and people in a sincere manner.

I hate nothing more than sugary photographs with tricks, poses and effects. So allow me to be honest ?and tell the truth about our age and its people.

Pure photography allows us to create portraits which render their subjects with absolute truth… if we can create portraits of subjects that are true, we thereby in effect create a mirror of the times.