Amsterdam, March 14, 1924. Paul Huf is born, the man who at the age of 22 would become a leading figure in Dutch photography. Whoever or whatever the Dutch master photographs—glamour portraits, fashion photographs, landscapes, still lifes, or nudes—his signature is always visible: the pure and simple, yet perfectly directed scene.
His first camera is an Agfa Billy Record folding camera, acquired in 1942 by trading a homemade amplifier with a friend. His first photograph is a portrait of his father. The enthusiasm that takes hold of the young Huf during that shoot will stay with him and inspire him throughout his photographic life. Important to his first career steps is his encounter with Stephan Nijhoff, a pupil of Man Ray, from whom Huf takes lessons during the war years. In the same period, local photographer Jan Vorsterman teaches him the importance of retouching and contact printing.
In 1948, Royal Dutch Airlines asks him to create an international color calendar, and Huf receives recognition for his photographic talent for the first time. The working relationship will span more than fifty years. Other major clients follow: Philips (fifty record sleeves) and Grolsch (Craftsmanship Is Mastery). A highlight by his own account is photographing Prince Bernhard and Queen Juliana in 1952, after which other members of the Dutch royal family also approach him and he gains national fame.
As the ever-optimistic Huf develops as a photographer, advertising photography in the Netherlands also comes of age and is able to express itself as an art form. This is somewhat surprising, since the co-founder of the Amsterdam photography museum Foam chooses simplicity—Huf has no use for complicated lighting setups or unusual viewpoints.
Huf’s greatest gift is his ability to present his models in a glamorous way, making them look more beautiful than they really are—portraying people to their advantage. A fine exercise of that talent is his series of well-known Dutch women for Playboy in the eighties.
Where Is He Now?
Paul Huf died on January 9, 2002. But he has not been forgotten. He lives on in the KLM Paul Huf Award, an award for young international talent. The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam honored him by establishing a special acquisition fund for Dutch photography.
