Alexander Dik

In 1992, Alexander Dik’s family, part of the marginalized "Russlanddeutsche" minority from Kazakhstan, moved to Marzahn, Berlin. Life was tough in the bleak neighborhood, but Alexander had one passion: painting.

However, his conservative upbringing forced him into a career as a supermarket salesman, practicing taekwondo on the side, while secretly painting in a cramped basement studio.

In 2018, he decided to pursue art full-time, enrolling at the Berlin Academy of Arts at 35. There, he flourished, with his professor praising his bold artistic evolution. His neo-expressionist and symbolic works, raw and unfiltered, echo Berlin’s contradictions—violence, displacement, and resilience. Working in a countryside studio, Dik channels his ideas onto multiple canvases at once, often incorporating the textures of his environment into his "floor paintings."

His techniques range from Pollock-like splashes to layered, mountainous textures, pushing the boundaries of oil paint.

Dik’s art confronts grand themes of origin, war, and displacement, often provocative and unsettling, yet deeply resonant. Inspired by artists like Georg Baselitz, he embraces controversy, challenging norms both as a man and a painter. His journey is a testament to defiance and self-expression, summed up in his words: "Do not live with the fear of others. Live your dream now."