Darren Houser was born and raised in the Midwest United States.  He received a BFA from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and an MFA in printmaking from Northern Illinois University.  His work has been exhibited regionally, nationally, and internationally. In his professional creative practice, Houser uses layers of visual information to create tension between objective depictions, and subjective interpretations of reality.  His work illuminates and explores the idea that reality as we know it is nothing more than language, a complex system of signs and symbols, which suggests that it can be manipulated through novel acts of creation.  With attention to process and craft, Houser uses digital printing and photography in combination with drawing, painting, and traditional printmaking techniques to create intricate and surreal imagery.

Selected Exhibitions

2019

• Worlds Apart: Comix+Fantasy in Prints, Constellation Studio, Lincoln, Nebraska

• Popular Opinions: A Cultural Discussion Exhibition, Duluth Art Institute, Duluth, Minnesota

• Odds & Ends, Ann Arbor Art Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan

• Opposites, Attleboro Arts Museum, Attleboro, Massachusetts

2018

• Real-Unreal (solo), Duluth Art Institute, Duluth, Minnesota

• Ancient Survivors, Thelma Sadoff Center for the Arts, Fon du Lac, Wisconsin

• Great Lakes Conservation Exhibition, Grand Marais Art Colony, Grand Marais, Minnesota

• The Chautauqua National Juried Exhibition: Transformations, Fred Parker Giles Gallery, Richmond, Kentucky

2017

• 25th Parkside National Small Print Exhibition**, University of Wisconsin-Parkside Galleries, Kenosha, Wisconsin

• 22nd Arts in Harmony 2017 Annual International Show**, Blaine City Hall, Blaine, Minnesota

• Vis a Vis, Gallery 214, DeKalb, Illinois

• Printwork 2017, Artists Image Resource, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Inner Worlds, Cade Art Gallery, Arnold, Maryland

  **Award