About me

Eddy De Buf

1954 Ostend (Be)

Works and installations

Solo exhibitions

2022: 'NO TRASPASAR – DO NOT CROSS' performance and installation for the Biënnale van België 'De Sokkel' SMAK Gent
'The world is a dangerous place', BLANCO* (Gent)

2022: 'Verloren voorwerpen', BLANCO* (Gent)

2014: '9ème MONDIAL de l'ESTAMPE et de la GRAVURE ORIGINALE', Triennale de Chamalières (FR)

2012: Das KUNST KABINETT HESPERT (Hespert, GE)

2011: Galerij Link (Gent)

2009: Het Zuiden van Europa (Gent)

2003: 'Deconstruction', galerij LINK (Gent)

2000: 'Artist in progress', vrienden van het PMMK (Oostende)

1993: Hotel Estival Torrequebrada, (Malaga, SP)

2015 : 'Ondergronds', Zebrastraat (Gent)
'OF/F BLANCO', BLANCO, an exploration platform of NUCLEO vzw (Gent)
'I'm stupid', Galerij Art Unit (Düsseldorf, GE)
Beelden aan de Scheldekaai (Terneuzen, NL)
Kunst in Depot Deluxe, (Hemiksem)
'I am in a place where I have never been before', BLANCO, an exploration platform of NUCLEO vzw (Gent) isw G.Winne

2016: "Art Under Construction", Krom Genthof (Brugge)
Groepstentoonstelling met: Jan Vindevogel, Kool Koor, Robbert Van Weynendaele, Dalia Nostratabadia en Werner Watty
Performing 'Black Mickey' Academie at SMAK Gent & tttH
NUCLEO OPEN ATELIERS #11
"In search of a new place and butterflies" isw Piro Pallaghy at BLANCO, an exploration platform (Gent)

2017 : Perfoming "In search of a new place and butterflies" at Cornwall isw Meindert Peirens / Charlotte Gruber/e.v/ Karin Verhaest
Groepstentoonstelling : Bakermat (Drongen B)
Performing '#red square 10' in California/New Mexico/Nevada (USA)
Making of the video 'a dog named Polacca ' at Arizona (USA)
Art under construction : Kasteeldomein Borgwal (Vurste)
Gallery L'ecole : met Robbert Van Weynendaele Olargues (FR)
'If you see something, say something! Isw e.v, Marnix Everaert at BLANCO (Gent)

2018 : 'Civil Disobedience' In De Ruimte (Gent)
Perfoming "Like the fox , I run with the hunted" at France/Belgium/Netherlands/Germany/Denmark/Sweden/Swiss
interview at the Swedish radio P1P2 about the project "Like the fox , I run with the hunted"
"Nine paintings, 3 frames' isw Jan Frank Demeulemeester, at BLANCO, an exploration platform of NUCLEO vzw (Gent)

2019: video "'How long does it take to get from here to there?' at Beach of North France.
Performing "Drawing a white borderline with a bag of plaster II" in the Alvord desert in Oregon USA
Performing "Desert - water - wall – noise" at Alvord desert Oregon USA
Performing 'What if there were some religious motives behind the action III!' on the road Oregon and California USA
'Sweet Seventy' Hommage William Sweetlove CAS (Oostende)
Video en performance ism P/ROPS (Gent )
'Would it make any difference if i never existed?' isw Brian Reinbolt (USA) Blanco Gent

2020: Buy Local Kunsthall Gent
Inside/out: video: Kasteel Bruloot Gent
Cecilia jaime gallery Gent
'Cast' gallery CAS Zottegem
'Als ich can' isw P/ROPS at Blanco Gent
'Tekenen in lockdown' SMAK Gent

2021: Art Ghent Brabantdam Gent, ism: Ben Benaouisse
"Maybe I should iron out my flag" Choase Opdorp
Kunsthall Gent Buy Local
'Beligicart' Ijsberg Damme
'Niemand is een eiland' Stadsfestival Damme vzw Ijsberg
'Bella Ciao' Artikel 27 Heusden Zolder
'It's all about the goldfish and the colour peridot' ism e.v. & Eddy De Buf Blanco Gent

2022: 'OFFSPACE', ism Ben Benaouisse (Gent)
'Art Ghent – Duffel', ism Ben Benaouisse nav de Vierde Triënnale Hedendaagse Kunst 'VERBINDING (verbroken) / (dis) CONNECTED' (Duffel)

2023:Buy Local, Kunsthal (Gent)
vzw 'Artikel 27', Zonhoven
'NO THING ON THE WALL ', Kasteel Borluut (Gent)

Works and installations

After a career as a painter from the early 80s until the early 90s, I stopped making art for a number of years. I prepared myself for the next phase of work, making small objects at my kitchen table, within the constraint of lack of space.

Some smaller works such as the books in the exposition, but also man-size ones. In these works I am very much turned inwards. For instance, the man with the penis-head ("What I do is yelling very hard that I am there, to not have to be there. I yell!") is talking to himself. As are the Twins, sculptures of connected heads. From the same period is the sculpture of the man with a box over his head and all his belongings hanging out from under the box ( "My house at the edge of society"). The theme of a refuge, a shelter as a place in which I can reflect about the world, like a closed monastery or a monk's cell. A place of (inner) activity, separate from the world. The "bunker" on the podium is such a place, connected to the world only through a tiny slot in front. It brings up memories of children building homes for themselves with tables, chairs and pieces of cloth. In this place of solitude a person can ask questions about being and non-being (Ich Bin's)

In my development as a person and as an artist I was drawn to the notion of landscape, as a place to step out into, from my inward focus into the world. Expressed by the monotype etchings showing a bunker within a landscape. This work is multilayered as it is also about seeing and not seeing, the bunker not being very obvious. Some of the etchings have the word Landscape on it in Braille. The artist wonders what associations or constructions blind people make around the notion of landscape. They see and they don't see. Yes and No.

The 5 sculptures in the main room of the gallery, "Jumper" express different stages of a person making a summersault around his own axis. The sculptures are still, yet in movement, displaying fragility, shame and surrender. About the risky business of a summersault, as one can fall and hurt himself. Risks which I associate with stepping out of the shelter into the landscape itself. The world is an unstable place. A wedge can at best hold it still. The small sculpture of the man standing on the hill ("The enigma") contemplating the world is an illustration of this. The next step is the man firmly rooted with his feet into the earth, "Man in landscape". As a bridge into a concept in the making, "squares" of earth taken out of the land.

Repetition is a constant in my work, "nearly autistic". Not one sculpture but 3 or 5. Not 1 etching but 60. Not 1 head but 160. The room filled with heads is an illustration of this theme of order and repetition. Kneeled on the ground one can see these heads as a freshly plowed field, a landscape, that one does not dare thread upon because it is fresh and perfect. The clay of the heads is returning to its origin and becomes part of the earth again.

"Ein kopf ist ein kopf" is about an object placed into a space, coming out of the form. It is inspired from a lesson by an art school teacher, saying "a head is a head, and it is made out of 2 circles". The prints are unique monotypes. Like all the other etchings they are based on existing drawings or existing objects. Such as the series of etchings showing (damaged) brains "Today I have a longing for here".

"Why do we need painting? What is the use of philosophy?". These and other questions and statements I ponder are shown on a series of busts. With my own body as a starting point, my place of shelter, and the only body I really know. My work can be summarized by "1 +1 = 3"

Karin Verhaest, Hespert, June 2, 2012 - based on an interview of the artist

Anna K. Kleeberg zur Serigrafie "Father" von Eddy De Buf

Der in Belgien lebende Künstler Eddy De Buf ist uns vor 3 Jahren mit seinen Arbeiten aufgefallen und im Kopf geblieben. Anfangs irritieren seine Figuren ohne Arme, nur Kopf, Nase, Körper, Beine. Sie hängen in Bäumen, liegen in Ecken oder krümmen sich über Kuben im Raum. Sie sind dumpf, stumm, zeitlos. Eddy De Buf ist das pure Gegenteil. Sein Wortwitz und die Mischung aus Flämisch mit englischem Akzent sorgen für Aufmerksamkeit.

Eddy De Buf drückt sich nicht vor Gesellschaftskritik, im Gegenteil er stellt kritische Bezüge in seinen komplexen Arbeiten her. Er schaut genau hin und das interessiert uns. Mit seiner Serigrafie "Father" und seiner weiter entwickelten Arbeit "jumper" beschäftigt er sich nicht nur mit gesellschaftlichen Themen, sondern geht in sich und versucht dort auf ganz persönliche Art aufzuräumen.

Eddy De Buf wird am Tag der Eröffnung nicht dabei sein, er hat ein Projekt in San Francisco. Er wünscht Ihnen und uns einen tollen Ausstellungsstart. Mit einem Kurzvortrag "Der Konflikt in der Kunst" wird Anna K. Kleeberg in die Ausstellung einführen.

Einführung: " Der Konflikt in der Kunst "