Jason DeMarte

Biography
Jason DeMarte creates fictional tableaux that examine beauty, perfection, and excess in relation to flora and fauna. In his most recent series Arcadia, DeMarte captured many of the source images in Costa Rica while on residency. His compositions are heavily inspired by 19th century Romanticism and more specifically, American painter Martin Johnson Heade. Each image is digitally composed to seamlessly blend scenes of hummingbirds, tropical trees and flowers with brightly colored, commercially processed candies. These photographs show a highly stylized world that combines the contrived and the natural. 

DeMarte’s work can be found in the collections of the 21c Museum Hotels; Fort Collins, Colorado Historical Museum; Fort Wayne Museum of Contemporary Art, Indiana; Los Angeles Center for Digital Art; and the Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago. He has shown in exhibitions throughout the US as well as in South Africa, Canada, and the United Arab Emirates. 

I am interested in modern understandings of the natural world and how that compares to the way western society approaches its immediate consumer environment. It’s important for me to compare established idealist utopian ways of representing the landscape to the hyper-perfect way products and modern consumer life are represented in media. I’m particularly interested in the idea of disillusionment through false or misleading representation. I’m interested in creating photographs that merge simulated forms of life and colorful processed foodstuffs with idyllic pop material goods, in an effort to create a dialog of consumption, duplicity and homogenized ecstasy. – Jason DeMarte

Education
2000
MFA, Photography, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR

1997
BFA, Photography, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO

Exhibitions
2021
Jason DeMarte: Trappings of Arcadia, Rule, Denver, CO
Exposure 2021 International Open Call Exhibition, Contemporary Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

2020
Reflecting Pool, Wasserman Projects, Detroit, MI
2020 Vision, Richard Levy Gallery, Albuquerque, NM

2019
Garden of Artificial Delights, University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI.
Solstice Soirre, Rule at Pool, Mr. Pool Gallery, Boulder, CO

2018
Power of the Flower, Concord Center for the Visual Arts, Concord, MA
Paintings, Sculpture & Snapshots, Museum of Outdoor Art, Denver, CO
Anthrome, Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Macky Theatre, Boulder, CO
Adorned, Rule Gallery, Denver, CO
Naturally Artificial, Denver Botanic Gardens, Denver, CO
It Doesn’t Look The Same Anymore, Pentimenti Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

2017
Confected, Gallery Kayafas, Boston, MA
To the End of the Earth, Detroit Artists Market, Detroit, MI
After Industry, Wasserman Projects, Detroit, MI
Confected, Richard Levy Gallery, Albuquerque, NM

2016
Second Nature, Rule Gallery, Marfa, TX (solo)
Gone Green, Rule Gallery, Denver, CO
Confected, SRO Photo Gallery, Texas Tech, Lubbock, TX (solo)

2015
Spinning Yarns, The University of the Arts, Hamilton & Arronson Galleries, Philadelphia, PA
The National: Best Contemporary Photography 2015, Ft Wayne Museum of Art, Ft. Wayne, IN (Juror Merit Award)
Confected, Month of Photography, Rule Gallery, Denver, CO (solo)
Playing with Beauty, Month of Photography, Red-Line Arts Center, Denver, CO
Unreal, Tiny Tiny Group Show, tinytinygroupshow.com
Yuma Art Center, Yuma Art Symposium Presenters, Yuma, AZ
Allegorical Space, Ann Arbor Art Center, Ann Arbor, MI

2014
Breaking Ground: Contemporary Photography, Andrews Gallery, College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA
How to Disappear, Watkins Gallery, Winona State University, Winona, MN
The National: Best Contemporary Photography 2014, Ft Wayne Museum of Art, Ft. Wayne, IN
Spinning Yarns, Art Gallery, Delaware County Community College, Media, PA
Spinning Yarns, Blue Star Contemporary Art Center, San Antonio, TX
Spinning Yarns, Rechnitz Hall Gallery, Monmouth University, West Long Branch, NJ

2013
Animal Skins Photographic Surfaces, Foster Gallery, University of Wisconsin Eau Claire, Eau Claire, WI
Consumption, University Art Gallery, Central Michigan University, Mt Pleasant, MI
Animal Show, Pterodactyl Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Blooms Bugs, Beasts, The Scarab Club Arts and Cultural Center, Detroit, MI
Spinning Yarns, Photo Center NW, Seattle, WA
Spinning Yarns, Martin Museum of Art, Baylor University, Waco, TX
Spinning Yarns, Newspace Center for Contemporary Photography, Portland, OR

2012
SPE Conference/Alumni Exhibition, LaVerne Krause Gallery, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
Sustenance, Northlight Gallery, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ
Panacea, Detroit Center of Contemporary Photography, Detroit, MI (solo)
Post Apocalypse, Gallery Project, Ann Arbor, MI
Annual Faculty Exhibition, University Gallery, Ypsilanti, MI
Spinning Yarns, Sleeth Gallery, West Virginia Wesleyan College, Buckhannon, WV

2011
Food for Thought, Gallery Project, Ann Arbor, MI
Mystic and Mysticism, Anton Art Center, Mount Clemens, MI
Utopic, The Art Institute of Wisconsin, Milwaukie, WI (solo)
Spinning Yarns, Kendall Gallery, traveling exhibition, Grand Rapids, MI
Spinning Yarns, University of St. Francis’s Lupke Gallery, traveling exhibition, Fort Wayne, IN
Gallery 44, International Exchange Project, Toronto, Canada
(un)seen and (un)heard, SoftSpot, www.soft-spot.net, Online Exhibition
Artist’s Choice, Detroit Center for Contemporary Photography, Detroit, MI
Spinning Yarns, Kendall Galleries, College of Art and Design of Ferris State University, Grand Rapids, MI
University Gallery, Annual Faculty Exhibition, Ypsilanti, MI
Ford Gallery, New Faculty Exhibition, Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, MI

2010
Open Daybook, Los Angeles Center of Exhibitions, Los Angeles, CA
Utopic, Wessel Snyman Creative, Cape Town South Africa (solo)
The Museum of Unnatural History, ClampArt, NYC
Midnite Snacks, 1366 space, Chicago, IL

2009
Utopic, Rule Gallery, Denver, CO (solo)
Red at Rule, Rule Gallery, Denver, CO
Santa Fe Community College Gallery, University of New Mexico Faculty exhibition, Santa Fe, NM
Ghost Print Gallery, Midnite Snacks, Richmond, VA
Midnite Snacks, USSA Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
The Un-natural Nature of Food, Fraction Magazine Online Journal, (Online Juried Exhibition)
Faculty exhibition, McComas Hall Gallery, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS

2008
New Perspectives, Meridian Museum of Art, Meridian, MS
Solitary States, Chelsea Galleria, Miami, FL
LACDA Top 40, Los Angeles Center for Digital Art, Los Angeles, CA
Rollover Minutes, Chelsea Galleria, Miami, FL
Plates to Pixels, Pacific Northwest Center for Photography, Featured Artist (Online duel artist exhibition)
Biennual Exhibition, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, Albuquerque, NM

2007
Barely Legal, Chelsea Galleria, Miami, FL
Photo Review, Gallery 1401, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA (International juried exhibition/publication)
Global Warning, Chelsea Galleria, Miami, FL (Featured Artist)
Plates to Pixels, Pacific Northwest Center for Photography (Online international juried exhibition)
Terminal, Trahern Gallery,  Austin Peay State University, Clarksville, TN (International juried exhibition)
Faculty exhibition, McComas Hall Gallery, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS

2006
Photography Now, 100 Portfolios, Write State University, Dayton, OH
Restoring Memory, Irene Carlson Gallery of Photography, University of La Verne, La Verne, CA (solo)

2005
Faculty exhibition, McComas Hall Gallery, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS
Katrina relief benefit exhibition, Architecture gallery, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS

2004
Restoring Memory, E3 Gallery, New York City, NY 9 (solo)
Gallery Retrospective, E3 Gallery, New York City, NY
14 Artists, Abu Dhabi Cultural Center, Abu Dhabi, UAE
12 Artists, Total Arts Gallery, Dubai, UAE
Restoring Memory, Over-ground Gallery, Dubai, UAE (solo)
Atmosphere, University Gallery, Artists Responses to Space(s) Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, MI

Collections
21c Museum Hotels
Blake Penthouse Collection, Taos Ski Valley, Taos, NM
Fort Collins Colorado Historical Museum, Fort Collins, CO
Ft. Wayne Museum of Contemporary Art, Ft. Wayne, IN
Los Angeles Center for Digital Art, Los Angeles, CA
Mid-West Photographers Project, Museum of Contemporary Photography, Columbia College, Chicago, IL
Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago, IL
Saks Fifth Avenue, New York, NY

Press
2021
Interview: Jason DeMarte, The Hopper Prize, April

2020
Daniel George, Jason DeMarte: Arcadia, Adorned, Confected, Lenscratch, April 9

2019
Haley Chouinard, 6 Booths Not to Miss at Art on Paper, Galerie Magazine, March 8
International Photography Annual #8 Fall, Manifest, Fall
Brendan Seibel, Medium Perfecting the imperfections of nature with Jason DeMarte, January 28
Brendan Seibel, The Art of the Unnatural, Adobe Creative Magazine, January 25

2018
Susan Froyd, Things to Do for Art Lovers to See and Do in Denver Through the End of 2018, Westword Magazine, May 15
Magical Photography Solos at Gildar, Rule Galleries , Westword Magazine, May 23
Jahla Seppanen, Flora Fauna Jason DeMarte Artifical Sweetener, Spring Issue, June 3
Miss Rosen, The Enduring Allure of Artificial Reality in Photos, Feature Shoot, September 4
Monika Homan, Fotoblogia Nature Dressed in Commerce, a Sweet Vision of Consumerism, November
Amanda Moutinho, An Overindulgent Truth, Boulder Weekly, November 1

2017
Anna Schuman, Confected at Gallery Kayafas, Boston Art Review, December 5
Jennifer M. Friess, Rule Breakers: Jason DeMarte, Don’t Take Pictures, November 20
Confected, Wall Street International, March 15
Sarah Rose Sharp, Three Artists Visualize the Uneasy Cohabitation of Humans and, Nature Hyperallergic, March 14
Glen Mannisto, After Industry @ Wasserman Projects, Detroit Art Review, March 5
Allie Biswas, After Industry, Studio International, March 4
Diane Armitage, Confected, THE Magazine, March 31
After Industry, Wall Street International, February 26
Nathaniel Ainley, A Group Show in Detroit Asks, Can Humans and Nature Ever Coexis, Creators / vice.com, February 4
Mimiking Nature with Fake Flowers and Candy, PDN Photo of the Day, February 3

2016
Andy Smith, Jason DeMarte Depicts Natural World With Nothing Natural, Hi-Fructose Magazine, August 4
Literary Journal, issue 88, Featured Artist, Quarterly West, Summer, 2016
Artist Jason DeMarte Seductive “Second Nature” by Miss Rosen, Crave Online, 7/22/2016
Jason DeMarte, Filter Photo, March 18
5 Artists to Watch, Life is too Short for Beige, February 3
Ray Mark Rinaldi, Denver’s Rule Gallery connects art to nature — and Astro Turf, Denver Post, January 1

2015
Utopic, Immaculate Consumption in Absurd Juxtapositions, Gestalten, November
Rachel Beitz and Valerie Santerli, Rule in Marfa, A Love Story, Eclat International, Summer
Mark Rinaldi, At Rule Gallery, Art and Legacy Live on, The Denver Post, April 10 Artist Interview, Jason DeMarte, Limitless Magazine, Denver CO, April 2
Susan Froyd, Gallery Sketches: Three New Shows in Denver For The Weekend, Westword Magazine, March 27
MoP Denver 2015 Redline, L’Oeil de la Photographie, March 19
Susan Froyd, Moth of Photography 2015:Ten Not To Miss Shows, Westword Magazine, March 6
Consumo y naturaleza x Jason DeMarte, Freshland Magazine, March 6

2014
Marion Regnier, The Beauty of Cheetos, Erectile Magazine, September 25
Strange Narratives Unfold in “Spinning Yarns: Photographic Storytellers”, San Antonio Current, July 2
Spotlight: The Beauty of Cheetos by Jason DeMarte, Talk of DC, June 28
Jason DeMarte, Nature vs Commercial Products, BeStreet, June 26
Victoria Casal-Data, Jason DeMarte Juxtaposes Sublime Landscapes With Cheetos, Beautiful/Decay, June 26
The Beauty of Cheetos by Jason DeMarte, Ignant, June 25
Priscilla Frank, Artist Explores The Tantalizing Beauty Of Cheetos And Donut Holes, Huffington Post, June 23
Amanda Gorence, Bizarre Photos Mash-up the Natural World and Consumer Society, Feature Shoot, June 13

2013
Featured Artist, BLOW Magazine, Published by Trocadero, Dublin, Issue 9
Unconventional Photography, One Twelve Publishing, Diffusion Magazine, Portland OR, Special Issue #1
Carl Hoover,  Wood-fired ceramics, tale-telling photos in new Baylor art show, Waco Tribune, January 31
Stephanie S. Turner, Humanimalia, Relocating “Stuffed” Animals: Photographic Remediation of Natural History Taxidermy, Volume 4, Number 2, DePauw University, Spring
Jason DeMarte, Interview, Light Leaked, Online journal,  April 1
OIL, Make 8elieve, Online journal, Issue #3, February

2011
British Journal of Photography, Featured Artist, Published by Incisive Media, UK, December issue
Angela Faris Belt, The Elements of Photography, 2nd edition, Focal Press
Six years Later, Art and design Magazine, Issue 2 Surface, Melbourne, Australia
Barbara London & Jim Stone, A Short Course in Photography, Prentice Hall, 8th edition
Barbara London & Jim Stone, A Short Course in Digital Photography, Prentice Hall, 2nd edition

2010
David P. Earle, Open Daybook, Mark Batty Publisher
Horizons British Airways in-flight publication, October
Featured Artist, Black Warrior Review, Spring/Summer, The University of Alabama
Southern Food, Oxford American, Issue 68, March 1

2009
Leanna Goebel, Art Week Colorado, Art Writer, Online Journal, July 14
Ken Hamel, Rule: Jason DeMarte and Ronnie B Johnson, Denver Arts Online Journal, July 10
Kim Russo, Teachers Turn UNM Faculty Exhibition, Santa Fe Reporter, March 30
Kyle Macmillan, The Frugal Valentine, The Denver Post, February 13
Barbara London & Jim Stone, A Short Course in Digital Photography, Prentice Hall, 1st edition 

2008
Raisa Clavijo, Solitary States, Wynwood, The Art Magazine, July
Rachel Hulin, Jason DeMarte: Utopic, Photoshelter Online Journal, June 10The Photo Review,Critical Journal, Volume 29, Winner in the 2007 Photo Review International Photography -Competition, Juried by Toby Jurovics, Curator of Photography, Smithsonian Museum of American Art

2007
Holly Otterbein, Catch it or Regret It, Philadelphia City Newspaper, December 12

2006
Photography Now: One Hundred Portfolios, International Juried DVD, Wright State University Art Galleries

Len Ly, Found Objects Evoke Memories, Campus Times, University of La Verne, September 29

Press Release
2020
2020 Vision at Richard Levy Gallery

2017
Confected at Richard Levy Gallery