Dante Buu’s works reflect a strong longing for belonging and solidarity. His artistic practice, often using handcraft as a decelerated, intimate, and meditative form, offers the audience the opportunity to actively participate in the creation of these communal spaces. Through his embroidery works, he not only preserves craft traditions that are often stigmatized as feminine and domestic, but also creates spaces where people who feel “different” can meet and share their stories. His work serves as a powerful tool for healing and social cohesion.
Dante Buu grew up in Rožaje, Montenegro, a country heavily shaped by patriarchal and nationalistic structures that dominate both society and the art world. Embroidery is a central part of the traditional dowry in this region, mostly consisting of decorative pieces for the walls of the new home. These works were often produced in a communal process by women and girls. These gatherings and the works created were part of a social practice that was shaped by patriarchal structures, in which women’s labor was strictly monitored and confined to the private space of the home.
As a man who defies patriarchal norms by taking up a traditionally female-dominated craft like embroidery, Buu’s practice is a response to his personal isolation. Much like the women and girls in his home country, he began embroidering because no other activities were allowed to him, and his participation in public life was severely restricted. As a gay Muslim, Buu is marginalized in multiple ways, both by the Orthodox Christian majority and by the Muslim community, where homophobia is widespread. This experience of isolation lies at the heart of his artistic practice.
In 2022, Buu represented Montenegro at the Venice Biennale. However, after the Biennale, the Montenegrin government imposed a work ban on him, excluding him from public cultural life for almost two years. Despite this repeated censorship and discrimination, Buu remains committed to his role as an artist. For him, art is not only a path to personal recognition but a platform to initiate social change and challenge the structures that marginalize people like him.
Dante Buu’s residency is funded by the Fellowship Program Weltoffenes Berlin of the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion.