Juergen Teller

NEW YORK—German photographer Juergen Teller, 41, is something of a chameleon, regularly switching gears between the worlds of fine art and fashion.

Line up his subjects and you’d be faced with a motley crew of models, celebrities and Teller’s family: His photographs run the gamut from O.J. Simpson in bed after having just been accused of murder; the desk of his own father, who had committed suicide; Arnold Schwarzenegger under a table in Los Angeles, his head in the jaws of a stuffed alligator; the model Kate Moss; his infant son grinning widely while floating in a bathtub full of suds; French actress Charlotte Rampling (clothed) and himself (not) in an elegant Louis XIV style apartment in Paris; and Meg White of the Detroit rock duo The White Stripes in a new ad campaign for Marc Jacobs.

And then there are his non-human subjects, such as a curled-up deer, a frozen dog in a trash bin in Czechoslovakia, and a series of caves.

Teller has exhibited his photographs widely, worked for American, French, British and Italian Vogue and many other magazines, and, in 2003, won the prestigious Citibank photography prize.

His latest exhibition, on view through Feb. 11 at the Lehmann Maupin gallery in New York, is a look at the history of Nürnberg, Germany, through stark images that depict both the place’s landscape and Teller’s family.

You have returned again to the subject of Nürnberg, where you grew up. It must bring back memories. But you have spoken of your childhood as having been conservative and repressive. Why go back to it?

It was both a happy and complicated upbringing which I’m both drawn to and wanted to address and explore.

Your current family life is also represented in the new exhibition. There’s this photograph of your baby in a bathtub enveloped in a cloud of suds that is equal parts adorable and absurd. How many shots did it take you to get that one? Why is he so happy?

Ed is a very happy child. He smiles so much, it seemed to me a true indication of his personality. I shot one roll of photographs while we were bathing him.

There are also photos of Nürnberg’s decaying Nazi monuments. One is of Hitler’s podium. These are interspersed with pictures of your family. The press release for your show says, “Portraits of vulnerability and introspection complement the images of the weeds at the Reich Party Rally grounds to make a moving proposition of cyclical renewal, hope and openness.” What do you want us to feel when we look at these desolate monuments?

Since I was a child, I have been drawn to The Reichsparteitagsgelande. My grandmother lived next door. It was dark and heavy but also a magical place to play as a child. My generation in Germany has always had a certain guilt about the past. The flowers metaphorically represent passing time, and even healing.

Your fashion work has often been pretty dark. But the recent family pictures can be rather gleeful. Are you optimistic about life these days?

I’m more optimistic about life. I’m trying to learn from the past.

There is a photograph with the word “liebe,” the German word for love, scrawled on a wall. It seems particularly affecting in this context. But what precisely is going on here? Is that paint? Blood?

I found that word painted on the walls of the Reich Party Rally grounds. I don’t know for sure what the material is, but it was very affecting.

What’s more fun, photographing celebrities or photographing your family?

You can’t generalize. Both are fun and hard work. It really just depends, but I very much enjoy photographing my family.

Then again a recent project of yours was an extended photo shoot with actress Charlotte Rampling, a friend of yours. That seems to combine fashion with celebrity with personal life… Is that the ideal project?

It took both of us to another place

Do you chafe at being referred to as a fashion photographer?

I’m working within the fashion industry, though it is only a small part of my work. If people refer to my work as fashion photography, it’s certainly truthful.

You once made a video of your own face as you watched a soccer game. What a great idea! How did you decide to do that?

I felt the need to document that experience—Germany was in the final against Brazil—and it is an outstanding achievement.