After studying architecture at Cornell University, Buxbaum, born and raised in Brooklyn, having attended Erasmus Hall High School, returned to New York City as a sculpture assistant to artist and architect Frederick Kiesler, who is known for his design of the Endless House, The World House Gallery in New York City, and the Shrine of the Book, which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls, for the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. Buxbaum would later name his daughter, Frederika (Rica), after his mentor. As an architect with the firm Davis, Brody & Associates, he worked on plans for the revolutionary U.S. Pavilion at the 1970 World Expo in Osaka, Japan. After a ten-year career in architecture, he turned his attention to art and was a pioneer of the SoHo artist movement, moving to an industrial loft in the neighborhood in 1970. His minimalist sculptures and line drawings were exhibited at galleries such as O.K. Harris, Warren Benedek, and 55 Mercer and his pieces are owned by private and corporate collections including Chase Manhattan Bank, Xerox, and Owens Corning.

One of the original founders of the food forum egullet.com, he was passionate about cooking, food, wine, France, and Spain and wrote about his meals and travels on this website.