Studio

At first glance, we see an artist’s studio—photographs of the studio of the German-Swiss artist duo Cortis & Sonderegger—that contains all sorts of what seem to be everyday objects. Yet suddenly, large things appear small and little ones quite big, and sometimes the perspective is just not right. Jojakim Cortis and Adrian Sonderegger play a sophisticated game with and about the authenticity of photography. Boundaries between the genuine and the fake get blurred.

During the covid pandemic in 2020–21, Cortis & Sonderegger built a detailed model of their own studio near Zurich with much of its furnishings, of which they took countless photographs. These images are confusing, turn our viewing habits upside down, and invite to take a closer look. The artists’ play with model and reality becomes visible on various levels: the view from the model’s window shows the real studio space; proportions look weirdly distorted; and occasionally, Cortis & Sonderegger themselves appear as protagonists.

In today’s world, with myriads of images produced every day, Cortis & Sonderegger’s Studio series constitutes a counterpoint to latest developments in of photography and AI-based image generation. 

Text in English and German.