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Chris Buck

Behind the lens: the global impact of TMU alumni in photography
Chris Buck, headshot by Lou Noble

Chris Buck

Instagram: instagram.com/the_chris_buck/ (external link, opens in new window) 

Program: Image Arts ’87

Website: chrisbuck.com (external link, opens in new window) 

Chris Buck developed his passion for photography and pop culture while at TMU (formerly Ryerson University) and was a figure in the Toronto music scene. He moved to New York in 1990 and has since made it his primary base. 

Buck’s celebrity portraits are renowned for their distinctive style: conceptual, irreverent, smart and intimate. His subjects range from Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar, to Donald Trump and Barack Obama, Cindy Sherman and KAWS, to Steve Martin and Seth Rogen.

In advertising, he’s shot campaigns for some of the world’s most recognizable brands, including Coca-Cola, Google, Microsoft, Kia and TD Bank. His personal projects include people who share his full name in Chris Buck’s Chris Bucks and the partners of exotic dancers in Gentlemen’s Club. 

Chris Buck, headshot by Lou Noble; Donald Trump, 2006; Kendrick Lamar, 2015; Seth Rogen, 2021

Chris Buck is a genius at creating photos that stick in people’s minds. He is a past master at coming up with inventive, offbeat ideas, and his subjects respond perfectly.

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Artist biographies have been edited or condensed for clarity and length.