Information
(Artist)
The notion of Mu transcends yes or no. In translation, its meaning comes close to ‘does not have’. Searching for Mu—taking shape in photographs, film clips, sound, and folded paper—is tantamount to a quest. I have journeyed nearly as far from home as possible. Nevertheless, a journey outward equally means an exploration of our inner selves—an inward journey seeking acceptance that life comes to an end, yet at the same time knowing that life is circular, continually beginning anew.
Synopsis
The photographic work of Paul Cupido (b. 1972, Terschelling, the Netherlands) revolves around the principle of mu: a philosophical concept that could be translated as ‘does not have’, but is equally open to countless interpretations. Mu can be considered a void, albeit one that holds potential.
Cupido’s ongoing photographic and cinematic experiment ‘Searching for Mu’ is at once a personal and universal odyssey of our fleeting existence in relation to the profound emotional experiences of love, time, and death. Instead of presuming to be documents, his photographs point to transcendent reflections of the soul and of the intermingling of the microscopic and macroscopic.
Artist Statement
I aim to engage with the world with wide-open senses. My work is about the magic moments of life as well as its inconveniences. I want to take pictures, while forgetting about the process of photography, until I’m saturated with an existential sense of life. Every step I take begins with the notion of ‘mono no aware’: the transience of everything, the gentle melancholy of things, being sensitive to ephemera
2021
‘The Play of Intuition and Meaning in Analog
Photography’
Masterclass led by Machiel Botman,
Amsterdam (NL)
2018 – 19
Le Masterklass by Klavdij Sluban
Masterclass led
by Klavdij Sluban, Paris (FR)
2013 – 17
Fotoacademie,
Autonomous Photography (cum
laude)
Fotoacademie,
Amsterdam (NL)
2016
Magnum Tokyo
Workshop with Antoine d’Agata
Six-night
workshop led by Antoine d’Agata, Tokyo
(JP)
2016
LFI Hamburg
Workshop with Jacob Aue Sobol
Workshop led by
Jacob Aue Sobol, Hamburg (DE)
2023
InCadaqués Residency
2023
Cadaqués (ES)
2022
Château Palmer and Leica
INSTANTS Residency 2023
Margaux,
Bordeaux (FR)
2019
Visual Art Residency, August
2018
Can Serrat, El Bruc (ES)
2018
LabVerde Art Immersion
Residency 2018, Amazon
Rainforest
Amazonia (Near Manaus, BR)
2017
Docking Station Residency at
Belfast Photo Festival
Belfast,
Northern Ireland (UK)
2024
Ursa Major
Self-published,
edition of 500
2023
Séléné
Filigranes Editions, edition of 800
(*)
Created during the Leica & Château Palmer
INSTANTS Residency
2022
Remembering You
Self-published,
edition of 300
2021
4 a.m.
Self-published, edition of 500
2020
Mukayu
the(M) éditions
& Ibasho Gallery, edition of 500
2019
Amazônia
Alauda Publications, edition of 750
copies
(*) Created during the LabVerde
Residency, Amazônia (BR)
2019
Continuum
Self-published, edition of 300
2019
Ephémère
Edition Bildhalle, edition of 800
2017
Searching for Mu
Self-published, edition of 200
2023
Inaugural Artist-in-Residence
Château Palmer and
Leica INSTANTS Residency
Paris/Bordeaux (FR)
In 2023, Paul Cupido was selected as the inaugural artist-in-residence for the Château Palmer and Leica INSTANTS Residency. The program culminated in a solo exhibition at the Leica Gallery Paris and a book titled Séléné, published by Filigranes Editions, which further encapsulated the work produced during the residency. This residency and exhibition highlight Cupido’s dedication to capturing the intangible aspects of nature through his photography, offering a contemplative experience for viewers.
2022
The Best Dutch Book
Designs of 2021
4 a.m. —
Awarded by both the Student and Professional
Juries and exhibited at the Stedelijk Museum,
Amsterdam (NL)
2022
EI Photobook
Award 2022
Encontros da
Imagem
Braga (PR)
Paul Cupido’s photobook 4 a.m. was awarded first place in the EI Photobook Award 2022, organized by the Encontros da Imagem festival in Portugal. The award recognized the book’s originality and craftsmanship, highlighting its significance in contemporary photography.
2022
LensCulture, Favorite Photobooks of 2021
Laura Moya, based in Portland, Oregon, is the Director of Photolucida. In 2021, Laura Moya selected 4 a.m. for inclusion in LensCulture’s Favorite Photobooks of 2021, highlighting the book’s exceptional quality and contribution to contemporary photography.
2021
Fisheye Photo Review 2021
Fisheye
Magazine
Paris (FR)
2020
LensCulture, Favorite Photobooks of 2019
Continuum was featured in LensCulture’s Favorite Photobooks of 2019, selected by visual artist Anaïs López. Renowned for her pioneering and innovative storytelling, López praised Continuum for its poetic narrative and evocative imagery.
2020
Notable Photobooks of 2019
British Journal of
Photography
London (UK)
Continuum was featured in the British Journal of Photography’s “Cool + Noteworthy” issue, highlighting it as one of the notable photobooks of the year.
2019
Jury Top Selection
GESTE 2019
Paris (FR)
Paul Cupido’s photographic artwork Suave was honored with the Jury Top Selection at GESTE Paris, an annual exhibition dedicated to experimental photography.
2018
Finalist, Discovery Awards 2018
Encontros da
Imagem
Braga (PT)
2017
Window of Wonder Contest Winner
Tipi
Bookshop
Brussels (BE)
In 2017, Paul Cupido’s work was selected for the “Window of Wonder” contest by Tipi Bookshop in Brussels. This initiative allows a photographer’s image to be prominently displayed on the shop’s front window, measuring 208 x 252 cm, offering significant exposure to passersby. Brussels (BE)
2017
New Dutch Photography Talent 2018
GUP
Magazine
Amsterdam (NL)
In 2017, Paul Cupido was featured in GUP Magazine’s New Dutch Photography Talent 2018, an annual publication that highlights emerging photographers in the Netherlands.
2017
Hariban Juror’s Choice Award
2017
Benrido Collotype
Atelier
Kyoto (JP)
In 2017, Paul Cupido received the Juror’s Choice Award at the Hariban Award, presented by the Benrido Collotype Atelier in Kyoto, Japan. His series, Searching for Mu, was recognized for its minimalist composition and profound exploration of existential themes.
2017
Artist Residency Winner 2017
Belfast Photo
Festival
Belfast (UK)
In 2017, Paul Cupido was awarded an artist residency through Docking Station in collaboration with the Belfast Photo Festival, a prominent international photography event in Northern Ireland.
2024
Paris Photo 2024, Paris (FR)
Duo: Les Nuits
Étoilées, Polka Gallery, Paris (FR)
Or Norme,
Guerlain, Paris (FR)
InCadaqués Photo Festival
2024, Cadaqués (ES)
Résonances (Les Rencontres
d’Arles), Fisheye Gallery, Arles (FR)
Can
Albertí, Mahón, Menorca (ES)
The Photography
Show, AIPAD, NYC (US)
2023
Paris Photo 2023, Paris
(FR)
InCadaqués Photo Festival
2024, Cadaqués (ES)
Solo: Unseen
Amsterdam, Amsterdam
(NL)
Dawn Chorus, The
Photographers' Gallery, London
(UK)
Singer Museum, Laren
(NL)
Coming to Light, Bildhalle,
Zurich (CH)
Solo: Séléné (*), Leica
Gallery Paris, Paris
(FR)
Photo London 2023,
Bildhalle (UK)
Perfectly
Imperfect, Ibasho Gallery, Antwerp
(BE)
(*) Instants, Château
Palmer and Leica residency
2022
Paris Photo 2022, Paris (FR)
Solo:
Remembering You, Bildhalle, Amsterdam
(NL)
Saint Laurent, Los
Angeles (US)
Saint Laurent
Rive Droite, Paris (FR)
The
Best Book Design 2021, Stedelijk Museum,
Amsterdam (NL)
Singer Museum,
Laren (NL)
Duo: Traces,
Museum Hilversum
(NL)
Wabi-sabi, Japanmuseum
SieboldHuis, Leiden (NL)
Incadaqués
Photo Festival 2022,
(ES)
Unseen Amsterdam,
Amsterdam (NL)
Group: Ocean,
Bildhalle, Amsterdam
(NL)
Photo Basel, Basel
(CH)
AIPAD 2022, NYC
(US)
Photo London, London
(UK)
Flora Photographica.
Flowers Gallery, London
(UK)
Bergamot Station,
Danziger Gallery, Santa Monica, LA
(US)
Extra Ordinary, The
Photographers Gallery, London
(UK)
Photobooks: Art Page by
Page, GRASSI Museum, Leipzig (DE)
2021
Paris Photo 2021, Paris (FR)
The Photo Book
as Object, Ibasho, Antwerp
(BE)
Singer Museum, Laren
(NL)
Solo: 4 a.m., The
Photographers Gallery, London
(UK)
Photo Basel, Basel
(CH)
Photo London, London
(UK)
Unseen Amsterdam,
Amsterdam (NL)
Group: Mizu,
Ibasho Gallery, Antwerp
(BE)
Rencontres d’Arles,
Ibasho Gallery pop-up
(FR)
Art Rotterdam 2021,
Bildhalle (NL)
2020
Paris Photo
2020, Paris (FR)
Solo:
Mukayu, Bildhalle, Amsterdam
(NL)
Nordic Light Festival,
Kristiansund (NO)
Photo
London, Bildhalle (UK)
Solo:
Mukayu, Ibasho Gallery, Antwerp
(BE)
Group: No Man is an
Island, Museum IJsselstein
(NL)
FFO 2020, Oslo
(NO)
Singer Museum, Laren
(NL)
Paper Positions, Berlin
(DE)
2019
Paris Photo 2019, Paris
(FR)
Unseen Amsterdam,
Amsterdam (NL)
Solo: Moments
of Wonder, Kahmann Gallery, Amsterdam
(NL)
Solo: Ephémère,
Bildhalle, Zurich (CH)
Group:
Seaside, Bildhalle, Zurich
(CH)
Photo Basel, Basel
(CH)
Photo London, London
(UK)
2018
Encontros da Imagem (Discovery Awards
2018), Braga (PT)
Festival
Internacional de Fotografia Paraty em Foco
(BR)
Athens Photo Festival,
Benaki Museum, Athens
(GR)
This Art, Beurs van Berlage,
Amsterdam (NL)
Fotografiska Stockholm,
Stockholm (SE)
Haute
Photographie, Rotterdam (NL)
2017
REVEAL, Graduation Exhibition Fotoacademie,
Amsterdam (NL)
New Dutch Photo Talent
2018 (GUP), Amsterdam
(NL)
Photography and the
Artist Book: First Edition, Atlanta
(US)
Robert Capa Center,
Budapest (HU)
Back to
Paradise, DeelenArt, Rotterdam
(NL)
Belfast Photo Festival
(Artist Residence Winner). Belfast
(UK)
2016
Tokyo Institute of Photography, Tokyo
(JP)
Het Oog, Amsterdam
(NL)
Bildhalle
Amsterdam
(NL)
Willemsparkweg
134
1071 HR
Amsterdam
info(at)bildhalle.nl
Zurich
(CH)
Stauffacherquai
56
8004
Zurich
+41 44
552 09 18
info(at)bildhalle.ch
bildhalle.ch
Ibasho Gallery
Tolstraat 67
2000
Antwerp
+32 3
216 20 28
info(at)ibashogallery.com
ibashogallery.com
The Photographers Gallery
16 - 18 Ramillies
Street
London,
W1F 7LW
printsales(at)tpg.org.uk
thephotographersgallery.org.uk
Other Inquiries
hello(at)paulcupido.nl
+31
(0)6 4900 6805
PAUL CUPIDO
Represented by Bildhalle Amsterdam & Zurich, Polka Gallery Paris, Peter Fetterman LA, The Photographers’ Gallery London, and Ibasho Gallery Antwerp.