Ruud van Empel  (Dutch, 1958) 

Rudd van Empel (Dutch, b. November 21, 1958) is an artist from Breda, The Netherlands, best known for his work in the field of visual arts. Though he started out working as a graphic designer, he found photography and videography more interesting. After graduating Cum Laude in 1981 from the Academie St. Joost in The Netherlands, he started working in photography, video arts, and theater.

Some of the artist’s early work involved staged photography and videos, which he gave away for free. In the 1980s, van Empel worked as a creative designer for theater productions, television shows, and movies. As part of his job, he created posters which those productions used in advertising campaigns. He changed his style in the 1990s, using digital manipulation to create new photographs. During this time, he worked on a series titled The Office, which showed typical office workers in non-traditional settings. In the late 1990s, he started to work on the series Study for Women. Each image in the series showed a female model in a different setting. Some of the images showed women in old-fashioned undergarments, while others showed women in modern clothing. His work often mixes elements that lead the viewer to question the impact of technology on the modern world.

van Empel is known for using Photoshop and other computer programs in his works. He usually photographs several models and takes images of animals, plants, and other items in nature before using computer software to combine those elements. Many museums around the world have included his work as part of a permanent collection, including the C-Photo Collection in London, England, the Chaney Collection in Houston, TX, The Alturas Foundation in San Antonio, TX, and The Generali Foundation in Vienna, Austria. His series Study in Green, which showed children in various tropical settings, is now available as a book. The Dutch National Television Network honored van Empel in 2011 with the television special Beyond Innocence, which focused on his work with children. van Empel currently works and lives in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.