Kurt Buesching is a Detroit-born painter and photographer whose work emerged from the second generation of Cass Corridor artists, a group now recognized for its raw materiality, urban grit, and unwavering engagement with the physical and psychological landscape of Detroit. Active in Detroit and Chicago throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Buesching exhibited in artist-run spaces, independent galleries, and in regional publications that helped define the era’s underground visual culture — including Detroit Artists Market, Willis Gallery, Latent Image, Detroit Focus Quarterly, and the influential Meat City, Mad Rhino and Wayne Review publications.
Over several decades, Buesching has maintained a disciplined studio practice while building a parallel career in design, photography, and visual systems, allowing his artistic language to evolve without losing its roots in structural clarity and urban observation. His current paintings and photographic studies revisit the industrial and architectural landscape with a minimalist restraint shaped by years of design experience. These works bridge past and present: grounded in the material sensibility of the Cass Corridor movement yet reimagined through a contemporary lens that highlights form, tension, and the quiet geometry of place.
Now re-entering the public art sphere with a mature and cohesive body of work, Buesching brings forward a long-standing visual investigation that speaks directly to current interest in post-industrial narrative, architectural abstraction, and the renewed cultural relevance of Detroit’s artistic legacy.
Education & Teaching Experience
1986
Bachelor of Fine Art (BFA), Wayne State University
Detroit, Michigan | January 1986
2005-2014
Adjunct Professor, College for Creative Studies
Detroit, Michigan | January 2005 – May 2014
Awards & Recognition
2000
Modern Healthcare Magazine
Best Hospital Web Sites – Medformation.com
(Allina Healthcare)
2005
Hospitals & Health Networks
100 Most Wired Hospitals & Health Systems – Oakwood.org
(Oakwood Healthcare)
2005
eHealthcare Strategy and Trends
Best e-Business Site – Oakwood.org
(Oakwood Healthcare)
2008
Summit Creative Awards
Silver Award – DIA Online Store
(Detroit Institute of Arts)
2008
Hermes Creative Awards
Platinum Award – Kellogg’s Online Store
(Kellogg’s)
2010
eHealthcare Leadership Awards
Gold Award for Best Web 2.0 Site – aHealthierMichigan.org
(Blue Cross Blue Shield)eHealthcare Leadership Awards
Silver Award for Best Interactive Site – aHealthierMichigan.org
(Blue Cross Blue Shield)
2011
Hermes Creative Awards
Gold Award for Best Website Overall – MiPerfectJob.com
(State of Michigan)
2011
Communicator Awards
Health Website – aHealthierMichigan.org
(Blue Cross Blue Shield)Communicator Awards
Business to Consumer Website – WhatsMyAQ.com
(Chrysler Corporation)Communicator Awards
Employment Website – MiPerfectJob.com
(State of Michigan)
2012
eHealthcare Leadership Awards
Silver Award for Best Physician Directory – WPAHS.org
(West Penn Allegheny Health System)
2014
eHealthcare Leadership Awards
Gold Award for Best Overall Internet Site – HealthPlus.org
(HealthPlus of Michigan)
2015
American Web Design Award Winner
Graphic Design USA Award for Best Websites – oe324.org
(Operating Engineers 324)
Exhibitions & Publications
1984
Detroit Community Art Center, “WSU Undergraduate Exhibition”
Detroit, Michigan | March – April 1984
1985
Detroit Community Art Center, “WSU Undergraduate Exhibition”
Detroit, Michigan | March – April 1985
1986
Detroit Community Art Center, “WSU Undergraduate Exhibition”
Detroit, Michigan | March – April 1986
1987
Meat City #1 – Summer 1987
Broadway Gallery, “Paint” Juried show by James Stephens
Detroit, Michigan | November – December 1987
1988
Detroit Focus Quarterly – Vol 6 #1 – Winter 1988
Review of “Paint” at Broadway GalleryMeat City #2 – Summer 1988
1989
Detroit Artists Market, Juried show by Al Hinton
Detroit, Michigan | April – May 1989Meat City #3 – Fall 1989
1990
Wayne Review – Spring 1990
Union Street Gallery, “Work by Kurt Buesching”
Detroit, Michigan | April – May 1990
1991
Mad Rhino – Spring 1991
Willis Gallery, “Hung For Collaboration”
Detroit, Michigan | November – December 1991
1992
Willis Gallery, “5 with Photos”
Detroit, Michigan | July – August 1992
1993
Latent Image Gallery, “Kurt Buesching Photos 1990-1992”
Chicago, Illinois | May – June 1993