Wolfgang Tillmans: Soldiers

Published in 2000 by Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König, Wolfgang Tillmans: Soldiers is a photographic monograph that explores the complex intersection of military identity, masculinity, and public space. The book compiles images captured by Tillmans during the late 1990s, focusing on British soldiers stationed in various urban environments. By positioning these subjects within everyday, often mundane settings, Tillmans intended to strip away the hyper-militarized veneer of the uniform, inviting viewers to engage with the men as individuals rather than symbols of state power.

The design of the volume reflects Tillmans’s characteristic interest in the tactile nature of photography and the subversion of traditional portraiture. Critics and scholars often note that the collection functions as both a documentary study and an aesthetic inquiry into the gaze. Upon its release, the work was received as a significant contribution to contemporary queer theory and sociological portraiture, cementing Tillmans's reputation for finding profound human vulnerability in subjects typically associated with rigid institutional control.