Art Bronski Beat helped German photo artist Tillmans come out
Music and identity: artist Wolfgang Tillmans explains why the group Bronski Beat plays a special role for him.
23.01.2026, 14:17
SDA
The song "Smalltown Boy" by Bronski Beat helped art star Wolfgang Tillmans (57) to come out. He was able to experience his coming out in 1984 when the song was in the charts, the internationally successful photo artist told the "Rheinische Post" (Friday/ Print Saturday).
"Knowing that I wasn't alone was special," said Tillmans. It gave him strength. The video for the global hit is about a young gay man who experiences misunderstanding and violence at home and sets off for London.
"Pop music has always supported young people in their search for identity. It helps to overcome feelings of loneliness. Especially when you live in a village and are cut off from other people. In this respect, music as a form of expression was relevant to me very early on," said Tillmans.
In the wake of David Bowie
In 1984, pop stars "couldn't yet be openly gay, and that's why they created a formal language that on the one hand is clearly what you would call queer today," said Tillmans. "At the same time, it was completely mainstream and considered stylish. All in the wake of David Bowie, of course, the great godfather of the whole 1980s generation." Other important musicians for him were Laurie Anderson and the Pet Shop Boys.
This Saturday, Tillmans will be presenting his own music at the Wuppertal club "Open Ground". Tillmans was born and grew up in neighboring Remscheid. He is one of the most successful photo artists in the world.
