FREDRIK NILSEN STUDIO is located in the Brewery Arts Complex in downtown Los Angeles’ vibrant Lincoln Heights neighborhood. Established in 1991, we specialize in the photography of artworks and installation photography, with an emphasis on rendering images that represent the art both in authenticity and quality. Our portraiture work spotlights many artists and creatives in L.A., as well as throughout the international art community.
DETAILS
About Fredrik
I view my photography as a gateway. My role is to offer people an authentic reproduction of a masterpiece, often one they will never experience in person. Understanding that the image becomes the primary representative of the work for reproduction, sales, scholarship, and general enjoyment drives my mission to serve the art by faithfully rendering it for posterity.
My creative instincts have been honed by the many years I spent working broadly with record labels, advertising agencies, industrial and medical companies and architects.
Earlier in my career, my experience as a founding member of the Los Angeles Free Music Society (LAFMS), an experimental music collective formed in the mid-seventies, connected me with artists and a community that acted as a catalyst merging my photographic practice closer with the art world. These days, I believe I’m getting even closer to narrowing the gap between the tangible experience of an artwork and its audience.
OUR COLLABORATORS
Art and Artists
Although my practice has spanned decades and a multitude of artists, institutions, and scenarios, I currently find myself drawn toward long-term projects with comprehensive goals. I have found deep satisfaction with such work at LACMA, The Huntington, the Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College, and the A Jerrold Perenchio Collection. This includes larger book projects, like those I completed for the Nasher Sculpture Center, The Menil Collection, Matthew Marks Gallery, The Noah Purifoy Outdoor Museum, Jeff Koons Studio for Gagosian, Hauser & Wirth, and Mary Weatherford Studio.
“Working with Fredrik on the Ken Price catalogue and exhibition documentation was a curator’s dream. We traveled the country together, and I watched him sensitively capture Price’s sculptures. Our journey continued with shows of Calder, Chagall, Frank Gehry, and LACMA's modern collection.
I am blown away by how in tune he is with artworks.
It's always a joy to work with him.”
—STEPHANIE BARRON, Senior Curator and Department Head of Modern Art,
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
“Sometimes people see the work in person but for the most part the world sees them in photographs. I think of Freddie more as an artistic collaborator than a photographer because of his involvement with how the world gets to see my work.”
—MARY WEATHERFORD, Artist
“Fredrik is a MASTER photographer...”
—M aka MR. CHOW, Artist & Entrepreneur
Having worked with Fredrik Nilsen for more than 6 years, I can confidently say that his dedication to his craft is unmatched. I first met Fredrik when he came to my studio to photograph my work for Hauser & Wirth, the international gallery that represents me. He later took a series of portrait photographs of me, which were so exceptional I selected one as my official portrait. I was impressed by his technical precision, but more so, by the uncanny ability to reveal visually something unique about the subjects and objects he photographs; this provides the viewer with a deeper photographic experience. Collaborating with Fredrik has been an absolute pleasure.
—CHARLES GAINES, Artist
“Mike Kelley introduced me to Fredrik when he was commissioned to shoot Day Is Done, the massive installation work that Mike created in 2005. The installation was a cacophonous village that the viewer wandered through, and we needed to capture the sense of place and find the narratives in that space to translate onto the page. Nilsen, who truly understood the work, brought his structural eye and unerring sense of light to the problem of documenting that complex work. I swore then and there to work with him at every opportunity that I had. He brings amazing craft to whatever the problem is at hand, and his work confirms the value of the proper documentation of art.
He is a wonderful collaborator.”
—LORRAINE WILD, Graphic Designer, Green Dragon Office, Los Angeles
SELECTED CLIENTS
Axe / Balenciaga / Ballroom Marfa / Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College / Chinati Foundation / Claremont McKenna College / Dancing Foxes Press / David Kordansky Gallery / David Zwirner / Edward Ruscha Studio / Fowler Museum at UCLA / Frieze / Gagosian / Getty Center / Hauser & Wirth / Hermes / Honolulu Academy of Arts / LACMA / Marian Goodman Gallery / Mary Weatherford Studio / Matthew Marks Gallery / MCA Chicago / Michael Werner Gallery / MOCA / Nasher Sculpture Center / Nike / Parker Media / Paul McCarthy Studio / Pace / Pilar Corrias Gallery / Robert Rauschenberg Foundation / San Jose Museum of Art / Smithsonian Magazine / The Box / The Huntington / The Menil Collection / The Perenchio Foundation / Three Trax Studio / Wexner Center for the Arts / UCI Langston Institute and Museum of California Art / Whitney Museum of American Art / Xavier Hufkens
LET'S TALK
Get in Touch
For general inquiries please reach out HERE.
Our studio manager will be in touch regarding availability and scheduling details.
Fredrik Nilsen Studio
620 Moulton Ave, STE 203
Los Angeles CA 90031
studio (323) 276-0736
www.nilsenstudio.com
IG: @fredriknilsenstudio
Website design + development: Mark Holley