Hannah Bender is a painter and printmaker based in Houston, TX. 

Photography by Joseph Bui

Blending modes of photography, painting, and printmaking, Hannah Bender develops 2D images through strategic layers of color, material knowledge, and physical mechanics. Her conceptual framework is informed by the overlaps between gender, labor, and science, using freight train subjects and hyper-feminine aesthetics with intensive, physical labor.

Hannah teaches Silkscreen at the University of Houston and manages exhibitions at the Lanecia A. Rouse Gallery.

Hannah holds a Master of Fine Arts in Painting from the University of Houston and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design from the University of Central Arkansas. She has been an artist-in-residence at Kala Art Institute, and has participated in studio assistantships at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and with independent portrait painter, Taylor Smalls in Oakland, CA. Hannah has exhibited with Blaffer Art Museum, Texas Photographic Society, Elgin Street Studios, Lawndale Art Center, Baum Gallery, and local third-spaces.

Artist Statement

Art and science have a hidden harmony that I find fascinating and curious about. Science connects me to the world, while making art connects me to myself. I like to approach my work thinking about the properties of my materials, their potential, physically and conceptually, and the connection between nature and the body.

How can outside variables, such as time, force, gravity, etc. affect the effect of the visual image? What components of math and science in the process dictate the image? When is pressure too much, and when is it just enough? Creating becomes a tangible experimentation with the real world. And sometimes, a reminder of what things feel like off-screen.

Through this physical interaction with nature, my work manifests as explorations of process, drawing upon concepts of motion. Slowing down requires patience; moving fast requires intelligence and grit. Both should only be used when necessary. My practice allows me to question and explore these complex relationships through printmaking, design, and painting.

Photography by Gandy Noble

Curriculum Vitae

  • Master of Fine Arts, Painting

    University of Houston, Houston, TX

    Bachelor of Fine Arts, Graphic Design

    University of Central Arkansas, Conway, AR

  • Artist in Residence

    Kala Art Institute, Berkeley, CA

    Aug 4 - 15, 2025

    Studio Assistant

    Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, ME

    Aug 2024

    Studio Assistant

    Taylor Smalls, Oakland, CA

    May 2022 - July 2022

  • In The Nave: New Versions in This World, Holy Family HTX & The LAR Gallery, Houston, TX

    group fundraising exhibition, Oct 19, 2025

    Her Voice, Her Vision, Soundwaves Gallery, Lockhart, TX

    group fundraising exhibition, curator: Makenna Hatter-Paxton, Oct 10 - Dec 2, 2025

    Untitled Art Fair, George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, TX

    Lawndale Art Center booth & UH School of Art booth, Sept 18 - 20, 2025

    47th Annual MFA Thesis Exhibition, Blaffer Art Museum, Houston, TX

    group exhibition, Mar 21 - Apr 20, 2025

    Decision ‘24, Charles Adams Gallery, Lubbock, TX

    group exhibition, juror: Brandon Zech, Nov 1 - Dec 2, 2024

    #NEWVISIONS2024, Texas Photographic Society

    online group exhibition, juror: Keily Anderson-Staley, opened Apr 19, 2024

    flammable, Elgin Street Studios, Houston, TX

    solo exhibition, Mar 21 - Apr 20, 2024

    By Hand: Alternative Processes, Center for Contemporary Arts, Abilene, TX

    group exhibition, juror: Christine Anderson, Dec 7, 2023 - Feb 3, 2024

    The Big Show, Lawndale Art Center, Houston, TX

    group exhibition, juror: Dr. Kanitra Fletcher, June 1 - Aug 12, 2023

    UCA Lactation Suites, University of Central Arkansas, Conway, AR

    permanent duo exhibition with Lindsey (Witting) Barnum, opened Feb 13, 2023

    BA/BFA Exhibiton, Baum Gallery, Conway, AR

    group exhibition, jurors: UCA Art + Design Faculty, Apr 7 - 18, 2023

    Black, White, and Shades of Gray, Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol, CA

    group exhibition, juror: Harry Frank, June 19 - July 25, 2021

  • Adjunct Faculty

    San Jacinto College, South Campus, Houston, TX

    Aug 2026 - Current

    Adjunct Faculty, Printmaking

    University of Houston, Houston, TX

    Aug 2025 - Current

    Gallery Manager

    The Lanecia A. Rouse Gallery, Houston, TX

    Oct 2023 - Current

    Gallery Preparator

    Lawndale Art Center, Houston, TX

    July 2023 - Current

    Volunteer Print Shop Tech

    Red Bird Press, Houston, TX

    Sept 2025 - June 2026

    Graduate Teaching Fellow

    University of Houston, Houston TX

    Aug 2023 - May 2025

    Gallery Preparator

    Blaffer Art Museum, Houston, TX

    Jan 2023 - June 2024

  • Nancy Luton Printmaking Education Grant, PrintHouston (formerly PrintMatters), Oct 2024

    Outstanding Student in the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, faculty nomination + application, University of Central Arkansas, May 2022

    Bear C.L.A.W.S. (Celebrating the Loftly Achievements of our Wonderful Students) Award, faculty nomination, University of Central Arkansas, Feb 2022