Today we’d like to introduce you to Thomas H.P. Jerusalem.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
Thomas H.P. Jerusalem of MUTE Photography is a Chicago based German photographer. After living in Frankfurt, Germany and London, UK for several years, he relocated to Chicago, in 2004. Thomas H.P. Jerusalem is specialized in fashion and conceptual photography with a focus on magazine editorials and commercial work. His work has been published in the US and in international magazines including VOGUE Portugal, Italian VOGUE/PhotoVogue, FHM, ESTETICA, Dark Beauty, DODHO, Kaltblut. He is a PhotoVOGUE Gold Artist, and has been listed in the ONE LIFE 2012 Catalog and is represented by the prestigious New York agency Art+Commerce/VOGUE NYC and Motion Licensing, London UK and gallery represented with YELLOWKORNER and LemonFRAME.
His childhood during the Cold War in West Germany and his father’s over-sized NY Photo Academy books from the sixties influenced his style that emphasizes atmosphere and strong narrative. Thomas H.P. Jerusalem started his career with Street Photography and Photojournalism, both very expressive ways of photography that forged his distinctive sensitive approach.
His work includes dark romantic, high-fashion, avant-garde and vintage space-age fashion photography with an European touch. His models are often placed in surreal environments – devastated, displaced, out of the world. Their appearances eerie and edgy with rebel and punk influences. Often spiced with irony and sarcasm. But always with a strong meaning or statement. His photographs are strong and are telling stories. His portraits are capturing souls – not just faces.
MUTE – The Sound of Silence (by Brian Thornton)
One of the strongest arguments against photography as an art form is the ability of a viewer to simply and quickly take in all of the aspects of a photo, and move on. No back story. Nothing left to the imagination, as some would say. I challenge these people to dismiss the works of Thomas H.P.Jerusalem so quickly.
These are images that haunt you by being both familiar, and strange. They raise more questions than answers, and the longer you study them, more mysteries some to light. You wonder what happened to the old dance hall [The old Dance Hall, Model: Natalie Lowden]? You wonder why the woman in white is walking the dog so late at night, and what is holding the dog’s attention [Black Ice, Model: Danielle Bateman, VOGUE Italia]? You wonder why the model’s dress matches the wallpaper [Tapetenwechsel, Model: Alicia Jerusalem, VOGUE Italia]? You wonder why Hallie looks so dismayed [Hallie, Model: Hallie Marie]? They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but Thomas’ photos amplify that, as his silent images send our minds racing. As we search for answers, perhaps the reality is as simple as the quote at the top of his photography page.
“It’s all about the power to freeze a Moment in Time for Eternity,” he explains– and that is exactly what he has done. “It was probably the many hours I spent with my dad, an amateur photographer, in his dark room watching him turning plain white paper into wonderful pictures using a ‘light machine’ and some fluids in colored trays,” he explained. “There was magic in this room behind the always closed door. I remember the dimmed red light, the film rolls, the developed negative films hanging on clothespins and the many wet photos posted on the tile walls until dry.” Thomas said he would hold his breath, and watch as the white paper in the trays transformed into wonderful black and white photos that captured a moment in time, adding that this experience led him to his current passion for photography.
“I can’t recall any specific one, there are too many that were ‘best’ to me,” he said as he tried to decide on a favorite photo experience, adding that all of his shoots have been uniquely memorable. “Maybe the one when I was kind of paparazzi-shooting Heath Ledger during the Dark Knight filming.”
Please tell us about your art.
I’m a professional photographer with a focus on fashion and conceptual magazine work.
Inspirations are usually things I have experienced, dreamed, lived. Things I am feeling or just my current mood – wrapped in concepts and fashion editorial, sometimes exaggerated, sometimes plain vanilla. I want the person looking at one of my photos to spend a minute thinking about it, absorbing it rather than just seeing it. I want them to think about the story, whatever they believe the story is.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing artists today?
Getting your name out, having a budget, and finding reliable people I believe are the biggest challenges for a photographer nowadays.
I hear a lot of photographers complaining about too much competition.
I don’t agree with that. You can complain and whine all day about people who are snapping pictures believing they are photographers and that this is the reason that real photographers are not getting anywhere, or you can spend the time whining in a more productive way and improve your work. If you compare yourself with smartphone users or people who hardly understand the camera settings on their DSLR you probably have a lot to learn yourself.
If your work doesn’t stand out you won’t get anywhere. If your work stands out, there can be hundreds of photographers or wannabe photographers roaming around your neighborhood you shouldn’t be worried about. Stand out, stand by your style, improve, believe in your work and most of all – be unique. In ‘The Industry’ you need to work with reliable people and have reliable connections (I know the words ‘reliable’ and ‘industry’ don’t go very well together, which makes it even harder), as well as having a budget to be able to shoot and compete (yes here we are taking about competition) with big name photographers – and I am not talking about the money you put in your equipment to be able to brag in front of your models about you having the coolest cameras and strobes.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
http://www.mutephotography.com
FB https://www.facebook.com/mutephotos
IG @mute_photography
Galleries: LemonFrame,TelAviv and YELLOWKORNER (worldwide)
Also, we were recently shooting “Sem Sentido” for VOGUE Portugal featuring my model Brianne Buishas and C. Rinella Designs besides American Eagle and Abercrombie & Fitch which was published with an 8-pages spread in their July 2018 issue of the VOGUE magazine.
Contact Info:
- Address: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem Photography, Inc.
MUTE Photography - Website: http://www.mutephotography.com
- Phone: 630 983 1547
- Email: info@mutephotography.com
- Instagram: @mute_photography
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mutephotos
Image Credit:
Level 5, Model: Haley Rose, Photographer: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem, Chicago, Illinois USA – MUTE
Wednesday, Model: Dahlia and Kayla, Hair and Make-Up: Melissa Ann, Photographer: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem, Chicago, Illinois USA – MUTE
Dunes, Model: Lena Seyfarth, Make-Up and Hair: Aiga Jekabsone, Designer: C. Rinella Designs, Photographer: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem, Chicago, Illinois USA – MUTE
Roaming. MARS., Model: Linden Jackson, Designer: C. Rinella Designs, Photographer: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem, Chicago, Illinois USA – MUTE
Fridolin, Model: Jacqueline Scislowski, Hair and Make-Up: Melissa Ann, Photographer: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem, Chicago, Illinois USA – MUTE
Samantha in the Park, Model: Samantha Atkielski, Photographer: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem, Chicago, Illinois USA – MUTE
Cheer, Model: Brianne, Photographer: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem, Chicago, Illinois USA – MUTE
Road Trip Illinois 1969, Model: Alicia, Photographer: Thomas H.P. Jerusalem, Chicago, Illinois USA – MUTE
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