Dennis BuckGermany

Dennis Buck (b. 1989, Ulm, DE) draws from the everyday and the intimate, using letters, words, and texts as a foundation for his artistic practice. Fragmented memories and emotional imprints serve as starting points for painterly translations that move fluidly between language and abstraction. What begins as writing is gradually transformed into poetic visual forms that speak in a language uniquely his own. Buck’s process challenges linear narratives, instead suggesting fleeting thoughts, self-irony, and gentle introspection.

Influenced by self-publishing, zine culture, and diaristic writing, Buck’s practice reflects a deliberate resistance to perfectionism. Working with oil paint, he builds richly textured surfaces through thick, layered applications that blur the boundaries between image and object. His compositions often incorporate recurring grid-like structures that are stretched, disrupted, or allowed to dissolve entirely, creating a tension between order and spontaneity. The resulting works possess a tactile, almost sculptural presence, inviting viewers to navigate the shifting relationship between language, memory, and materiality. His visual language is both personal and generational, anchored in the present while carrying traces of the cultural landscape of the early 2000s.

Dennis Buck studied at the State Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe and at the University of the Arts Berlin, where he completed his Meisterschüler in 2016. He lives and works in Berlin. His works have been exhibited in solo and group shows across Europe and the US, including the exhibitions How to Pay Back the Sun? at the Center for Openness and Dialogue (COD) in Tirana (2023), Sweaty Self at Haverkampf Leistenschneider in Berlin (2023), Sweet Drama at JVDW Gallery in Düsseldorf (2023), and Amateur Poems at Ruttkowski;68 in Paris (2025). Notably, his duo show Here read this with longtime friend Michael Günzer at Ruttkowski;68 in Paris (2024) explored the intersections of text and gesture, through visual dialogues rooted in personal histories. Residencies in California (2018), Portugal (2021), and Spain (2024) have further shaped his approach to material and narrative experimentation. He is also a founding member of the artist collective Dorf, established in 2017 alongside Andi Fischer, Michael Günzer, and Conny Maier.