David Hoffos

Scenes from the House Dream

Through my installation work I have sought to reveal and examine the sources of illusion found within genre movies, theme park attractions, museum displays, 19th century parlours and 20th century living rooms. The evolution of my work has been a steady process of accumulating and inventing techniques and devices and then applying and refining them. Over the course of more than 40 installations my work has developed step-by-step from simple, stand-alone film/sculpture pieces into complex, immersive, multi-channel environments. A few of the techniques and devices that characterize my work include: film and video projection onto cut-outs, large miniature scenes, mirrored boxes, phantom figure illusions, ghost video glass effects, cineramas, homemade video projectors, and curtained entrances.

In 2003, in a move towards more personal archetypes and subjects, I embarked on a five-year, six-phased project which will soon result in the comprehensive exhibition of a series of twenty-five small, linked installations. In the shape of a long, dark, winding hallway (resembling a gloomy aquarium, fun-house or nocturnal zoo exhibit), Scenes from the House Dream will represent an encyclopedia and extension of my accumulated techniques. As a journey through scale – from the cosmic to the microscopic – Scenes from the House Dream will establish the viewer as a sort of Gulliver, negotiating their way towards the House of the title – the archetypal dream house where doorways lead to endless hallways and undiscovered rooms.

David Hoffos: Scenes from the House Dream, Airstream, detail, single channel video, audio and mixed media installation, 2003. Private collection

Bio

In 1994, David Hoffos received a BFA with great distinction from the University of Lethbridge. Since 1992 Hoffos has maintained an active exhibition schedule – with over 30 solo exhibitions, including Catastrophe, 1998 (Illingworth Kerr Gallery, Calgary; Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona; Or Gallery, Vancouver; and Blackwood Gallery, Mississauga) and Another City, 1999-2002 (Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge; Trépanier Baer, Calgary; Joao Graça, Lisbon; The Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto; and Museé des Beaux-Arts, Montréal). In 2003 Hoffos (with Trépanier Baer) launched the first phase of Scenes from the House Dream, a five-year series of linked installations. The entire series is set to begin its cross-Canada tour in the fall of ’08. His single-channel work has been shown in festivals in over twenty countries, and he recently represented Canada at the 48th Oberhausen Short Film Festival, Germany. A survey of his installation work debuted at the Edmonton Art Gallery in December, 2003. His first theatre piece – Hoffos/Clarke Conspiracy (with Denise Clarke/One Yellow Rabbit) – debuted at Calgary’s High Performance Rodeo in 2006. Upcoming exhibitions include the 2007 Biennale de Montréal. Hoffos has been invited to several residencies, including three at the Banff Centre. The artist has received awards including 2nd place in the inaugural Sobey Art Award, December 2002; the 2004 York Wilson Endowment Award; and Images Grand Prize, 2007.

David Hoffos lives and works in Lethbridge, Alberta. He is represented by Trépanier Baer, Calgary.

Links

Trépanier Baer: http://www.trepanierbaer.com/artists.asp?ArtistID=49

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