We set out to create distinctly ambiguous images that challenges the viewer to look twice

Download our artist statement and CV as a printable PDF

Established in 2011 by Stephan Friedli (CH) and Ulrik Martin Larsen (DK) and currently based in Copenhagen, PUTPUT is the visual and conceptual meeting of two minds, a collaboration in thought and practice.

Neatly placed between input and output we navigate the increasingly busy intersection where photography, sculpture and design meet. A shared and deeply rooted fascination with metaphysical relationships connected to everyday objects guides and perpetuates our work.

A humoristic undercurrent runs through the reduced, ambiguous and profoundly superficial visual universe that defines PUTPUT. Playful constructions, transient in their nature, transform the ordinary into the extraordinary. Ideas, concepts and the notion of creating fictional but recognizable object typologies are at the very core of our artistic practice. The highly stylized visual universe has references to Pop Art, surrealism and reinterprets classical genres such as still life through a contemporary lens.

We undertake a meticulous interrogation and research of our a immediate surroundings through ideas and concepts to purposely build connections between meaning, expression and artifact; reinventing and reconfiguring the context and expression of objects leads to new questions that beg to be answered through the objects and images themselves. We set out to create self-explanatory images that challenge perception through juxtapositions of objects, both manmade and natural in the hope that the viewer might look twice…or more and to maybe upon that second glance discover something unexpected or unseen.

Exhibitions

Since our inception we have had the pleasure of showing our work in a
number of solo shows, group exhibitions and photography festivals.

Solo Exhibitions

Group Exhibitions

  • 2018

  • Still Life

    116 Contemporary Art Center, Montreuil

We have completed commissions for a number of international clients such as Süddeutsche Zeitung, NEON, Wallpaper Magazine, Bianco and many more. We hope you are next!

Reach out

Selected publications

Books

Exhibition Catalogues

  • 2013

  • Format 13

    Format International Photography Festival, England

  • Fashionclash 13

    Fashionclash Maastricht, The Netherlands

Magazines

We love to share our view of the world, our way of working and to engage with like minded people. We lay the cards on the table and offer insights into our universe and process.

Get in touch for lectures and talks

Grants

Throughout the years our work has been generously supported by several
foundations, an invaluable contribution for our continued development.

  • 2016

    Pro Helvetia

    Project Support Grant

  • 2016

    Danish Arts Council

    Working grant

  • 2016

    Danish Arts Council

    Exhibition Production Grant

  • 2014

    Danish Arts Council

    Working grant

  • 2014

    Danish Arts Council

    Exhibition Production Grant

  • 2013

    Danmarks Nationalbanks Jubilæumsfond

    Exhibition Participation Grant