Fotobaserte

Fotobaserte is a term used in Norwegian and Scandinavian art discourse to describe artworks in which photography or photographic sources form the central material, concept, or method. The term denotes works whose meaning and structure rely on the image produced by or derived from a photograph, rather than on painting, sculpture, or purely non-visual media. In catalogues and labels, fotobaserte works are typically distinguished from traditional painting or drawing by their reliance on photographic imagery as the primary carrier of content.

The scope of fotobaserte practices includes photographic prints, photomontage, digital manipulation, collage, and installations that incorporate photographs or photographic sequences. The photographic source may be original photographs, archival images, found photographs, or virtual images produced digitally. Even when the final artwork is presented as a print, a projection, or a mixed-media installation, the photo-based approach remains central.

In contemporary art, fotobaserte works often engage with memory, representation, media criticism, or identity, using photography to question truth, authorship, or the construction of images. The term helps curators and researchers classify works whose method relies on photographic image-making rather than other primary media.

Fotobaserte is related to, but distinct from, "fotografisk" (photographic in the sense of depicting with a camera) and "fotomontasje" (photomontage), as well as to broader categories such as multimedia art or visual art where photography is a component. The label is most often used in Norwegian or Scandinavian contexts and may appear in museum descriptions, art criticism, and collection databases.