Michael Hofmann

"Eye-catcher" with works by Michael Hofmann

01.12.2005 - 31.12.2005

Opposites merge to create unity It would appear that, to an artist, Dresden and the proximity to this city obliges him to follow a tradition which has seen painters, poets and philosophers, master builders and musicians to create remarkable things over the centuries. Michael Hofmann is one such artist to work according to this Saxon tradition, with its varied talents, skills, ideas and visions. The irregularity, the colourfulness and the various themes depicted by his wood engravings and collages catch the eye of the observer: hence the word ”eye-catcher” used to describe the exhibition – which can be viewed in the LAUDA FabrikGalerie until January 2006 – is allusive and ambiguous. Once again, the vernissage was an all-round delightful, inspirational evening. Michael Hofmann’s works are full of both a cheerful and a serious vividness, which is why his friends call him the ”Cheerful serious one”. The scenes from his home town of Radebeul, close to Dresden, the Elbe pastures, the Belvedere, the vineyards on the River Elbe, his still lifes, are gentle and cheerful. The occasional sharp or even hard lines of the wood engravings are always softened by the poetry of his colours and the sweep of his fine, lively movements. His images of Spain, bearing such fine-sounding titles as ”Grandiosa Corrida de Toros”, are reminiscent of Picasso’s brilliant brushstroke which, like Michael Hofmann’s wood engravings, are reduced to the minimum and the essential, yet produce an incredibly sharp image. Non-political and non-critical of society such as the great HAP Grieshaber, Michael Hofmann’s angels: they are graceful figures, vigilant companions of man – guardian angels. They form central themes of his work, as does death, which Hofmann manages to make less frightening, since he sees it as an important part of life. His glass windows, created for numerous churches and public buildings, are further testimonials to his diversified working world. His series of pipers is as edgy and poster-like as are the numerous portraits of famous contemporaries created by the famed Dresden wood engraver Conrad Felixmüller during the 1920s and 1930s. Hofmann tells stories in his works – light, colourful, clear, cheerful, frequently mischievous – yet also mysterious, containing a hidden message, a statement to be discovered, to be encoded. If you were to place a descriptive word next to the work, the words used would range from gentle lyrical poetry through to vociferous ballads. The enthusiasm for his own métier and his artistic colleague was palpable when Norbert Gleich, chairman of the Art Circle of Lauda-Königshofen, presented Michael Hofmann’s world of figures and scenes. Born in Chemnitz in 1944, he learned reproduction photography then studied art in Dresden and Leipzig. Upon completing his studies, he knew that the main focus of his creative works would be painting, coloured wood engravings and the design of glass windows. Everyday topics which allow a varied interpretation are subjects of his work. (Excerpt: Kerschkowsky)

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