Asger Carlsen

Asger Carlsen’s deftly photoshopped images depict impossible and funny manipulations of the human body. His subjects have extra (or removed) limbs, are truncated into bizarre sculptural forms, or collaged into extreme scenarios. Carlsen began his career as a crime scene photographer at the age of 16. In 2006, he started digitally distorting his images. Carlsen’s frankensteined photography has been compared to the work of early 20th-century artists like Surrealist Hans Bellmer and Weegee. He is widely known for his black-and-white series “Wrong” (2008–10) and “Hester” (2010–13), featuring grotesque nudes that mimic classical sculptures. His printed “BLISTERCARD” series (2017–18) moves toward more painterly abstractions. Carlsen’s past exhibitions include the 2016 Berlin Biennale and solo shows at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome (2014) and the Foam Fotografiemuseum (2017).