Classic beauty meets digital glitch

Julien Deiss (born 1983 in Düsseldorf) is a master of constructive destruction. His works are visual conflicts that immediately dominate the space. Having graduated from the renowned Düsseldorf Art Academy (class of Lüpertz and Anzinger), he has perfected the academic craft, only to break with it radically in the next step. His large-format canvases and reworked sculptures appear to be a head-on collision between the reverence of antiquity and the speed of the digital age. Standing in front of a Deiss piece, one senses the energy of a struggle between perfection and dissolution.

Although his roots lie in the Rhineland, Deiss now lives and works in Copenhagen. This change of location is evident in his aesthetic: the raw, expressive style of German Neo-Expressionism meets the cool, design-conscious clarity of Scandinavia. He draws inspiration from this field of tension, as well as from the visual overload of our time. Deiss is fascinated by the 'disruption' in the system — the moment when a classical ideal (such as a Roman bust or an icon of art history) suddenly becomes accessible and contemporary through a 'glitch', an error or a raw overpainting.

Technically, Deiss works with a complex mixed media process. He layers oil, acrylic, spray paint and collage elements on top of each other, often supplementing them with unconventional materials such as glass paint or Dura-Crayons. The process is physical: he builds up pictorial spaces only to partially scratch, paint over, or 'erase' them. A particularly notable series sees him splashing antique sculptures (e.g. after Thorvaldsen) onto the canvas or rendering them as real objects with neon colours and rough brushstrokes. This technique is similar to sampling in hip-hop, but uses visual codes from art history.

Julien Deiss's track record proves his international relevance. As well as exhibiting in well-established galleries in Denmark and Germany, his work has been exported as far as Sydney. A particular highlight was his solo exhibition, Resonance, at the North Rhine-Westphalian State Parliament in 2022, which established him as a socially relevant artist. His works can be found in private collections across Europe and Australia.

E30 Gallery presents Julien Deiss as one of the most exciting artists for collectors seeking a "clash" of cultures. His art is ideal for modern interiors that can handle a strong statement. Deiss provides intellectual friction, showing us that beauty often becomes truly interesting only through rupture, error or imperfection. Julien Deiss's works reflect the energy of the Düsseldorf Academy and the Copenhagen avant-garde in equal measure.