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About the Artist
Limited Editions |
Brief Biography Name: Detlef Buettner
Detlef Buettner, a native of Hamburg/Germany, caught his first fish on the Elbe River
when he was 12 years old and has been fishing ever since. The idea to paint lifesize
watercolors of fish began in 1977, when at the age of 18, Detlef took a fishing trip to
Finland. However, his first drawings were much simpler than the paintings he produces
today. Detlef was encouraged in his early artistic attempts by having two colored pencil drawings published in a German fishing magazine called "Blinker" (Jan. 1979 Issue). The two drawings - a Northern Pike and a Yellow Perch - were accompanied by an article in which the artist explained how he had drawn the fish. Detlef informed the readers that " you learn to see fish in their entire beauty because you have to look real closely when you want to draw them ". In 1982 Detlef moved to Alaska and accepted his first job with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The three month long project involved tagging of adult Coho salmon at a remote field camp on Chichagof Island. The adventure is described in Where Salmon come to die, a book published in 1993 by Leon Kolankiewicz (Detlef's work partner). Detlef studied Fisheries Biology at the University of Alaska Southeast and graduated with a BS degree in 1989. The artist also took watercolor classes at UAS. His interest in painting lifesize fish - now in watercolor - was revived when one day in June of 1985, he landed a beautiful Steelhead and decided to make a painting of it. Everything clicked at that moment and Detlef has not looked back. His painstaking attention to color, shape and scale pattern results in highly detailed, technically magnificent portraits. The artist has completed numerous paintings of fish native to Alaska and Northern Europe. His first limited edition print was published in 1987 and six other editions have since been published. Today, Detlef has built an audience in Juneau and throughout Alaska. Prints of his work are hanging in private homes of enthusiastic anglers, doctor's offices and fishing lodges. In addition to prints, Detlef's fish are available on cards. Detlef works as a Fisheres Biologist for the Alaska
Department of Fish and Game.
Since 1989, he is employed at the "Mark,
Tag and Age Lab", where, among other assignments, about 50 000 salmon heads
are examined annually for the presence of a small magnetized tag. The
accumulated data is used by fisheries professionals to manage and secure sustainable
harvests of Pacific Salmon on regional and coast wide levels.
You can order Limited Edition Prints
by directly contacting the artist.
For further information
All Images belong to Detlef Buettner of
"Lifesize Fish" and are © COPYRIGHT protected. Any commercial use of
"Lifesize Fish" images needs written permission by Detlef Buettner.
For non-commercial use of the images, please give credit to the artist by linking to Detlef
's web page.
Please respect the copyrights.
Thank you for your visit.
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