I Wanted to See the World Tapa blanda - 2011

Jessica Backhaus was born in Cuxhaven, Germany in 1970. At the age of sixteen, she moved to Paris where she studied photography and visual communications. Here she would meet Gisele Freund in 1992, who became her mentor and close friend. In 1995 her passion for photography drew her to New York, where she started assisting photographers and pursued her own projects. Since then her work has been shown in numerous solo and group exhibitions, including The National Portrait Gallery in London and the Martin-Gropius-Bau in Berlin.

In Fall 2005 her first book, Jesus and the Cherries was published by Kehrer Verlag, Heidelberg. Fall 2008 brought two new books, both published by Kehrer Verlag. The first titled What Still Remains and the second book One Day in November which is a visual homage to Gisle Freund, who would have celebrated her 100th birthday in December 2008.

Backhaus is represented by Laurence Miller Gallery in New York, Robert Morat Galerie in Hamburg and The Photographers' Gallery in London. While based in New York, Jessica divides her time and life between Europe and the United States.