Daniel Houten

Porto Alegre – RS, 1995

An undergraduate in Audiovisual Production from PUCRS, Daniel Houten employs the modalities of drawing, photography, and video art to portray, especially, the feeling of “not-feeling”.

Influenced in his childhood by horror films and animations, the audiovisual artist often uses the house where he lived for many years as an amateur set of sinister ambiance for his creations. “I love content that involves horror and the representation of the feeling of fear in general; the fear of what lies in a dark corner of the house, or the fear of losing one’s connections to other people”, says Daniel Houten. Amongst his recurring themes are the transformation of common spaces into obscure ambiances, and the macabre existence of faceless characters, which are able to provoke a feeling of estrangement (unheimlich, in German) in the person viewing his work.

Artworks:

“Blecaute” [“Blackout”] (2019). Sequential photos made with cell phone, flashlight, and digital drawing. Production, direction, and editing: Daniel Houten. Audio granted by other sources – credit: Splicesound, InspectorJ, Hykenfreak, Gabemiller74, pfranzen. Duration: 3”. Available here.

“Macro” (2018). Video made with a cell phone and macro lens, in a set with toys and figurines. Production, direction, and editing: Daniel Houten. Audio granted by other sources – credit: Kevin Macleod. Duration: 48”. Available here.

“untitled” (2020). Digital drawing and collage. Available here.