18 Questions With...
Julius Hofmann

May 6, 2025
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Julius Hofmann

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18 Questions With...
Julius Hofmann

May 6, 2025 1
Share this interview:
Interview image

Julius Hofmann

"18 Questions With" is an interview series featuring the artists, curators, and gallerists driving art's next wave.

Julius Hofmann is a German painter based near Göttingen and Leipzig whose work explores the intersection of classical painting and digital media. His practice blends figurative composition with digital-age aesthetics, drawing on influences from the Neue Sachlichkeit movement, 1990s CGI, and film genres such as noir and horror. Hofmann’s paintings often feature distorted perspectives, polygonal figures, and glitch-like surfaces, creating scenes that resemble broken virtual worlds. Themes of technological anxiety, consumer culture, and identity in a media-saturated society run throughout his work, which balances dark social critique with irony and surreal humor.

Q01:
What's the first thing you do when you step into your studio?
A01:

Take a look at what was done the previous day and I hope I can connect again.

Q02:
What's inspiring you right now?
A02:

The very early cubism style of Magritte, impressionism, "flat design," and pastel colour schemes.

<p><em>Deserted</em> (2019) by Gatecreeper</p>

Deserted (2019) by Gatecreeper

Q03:
What are you listening to in your studio?
A03:

Metal, dark electronics, ambient. White/brown noise generators; podcasts and audiobooks. Ice Ages' This killing emptiness (2000). Gatecreeper's Deserted (2019).

Q04:
What's a dream project you haven't tackled yet?
A04:

Making more music.

Q05:
What's the best advice you've ever received as an artist?
A05:

There are many influences—it would be very hard to name one. I've read a lot of design/photography and composition books over the years.

When I was at academy. Tal R told me: "Great dance steps, but in the wrong club." It's kind of true in hindsight—it’s not enough to have skills if you’re not in the right place or context. Back then I was unwilling to accept it (does one even need belong to a club?), but the clever/funny phrasing stuck with me.

Q06:
What's the worst advice you've ever received as an artist?
A06:

There's a lot of bad advice that I give myself on a daily basis. I'm shocked when I look at work-in-progress photos: missed opportunities, almost-finished (and later painted over) pieces...

Q07:
Most recent purchase?
A07:

All kinds of work materials and tools. But my studio is already so full of stuff, I've been trying to hold back lately.

<p>Perlenbacher Premium Pils Beer</p>

Perlenbacher Premium Pils Beer

Q08:
Favorite libation?
A08:

Besides good gin, I have a little weakness for [Perlenbacher Premium Pils] canned beer from the discount grocery store Lidl.

Q09:
What's a vice you wish you could give up?
A09:

Letting myself be distracted by self-doubt all the time.

Q10:
Favorite city?
A10:

Cities in general have turned into a big turnoff for me. It's very exhausting to be bombarded with that much stimulus and noise.

Q11:
Do you like surprises?
A11:

Depends, but in general—not really. On the other hand, I enjoy surprises when I encounter them while doing my process-based pieces (in a "sandbox"), or when viewing other people's art.

Q12:
What's the biggest learning experience you've had?
A12:

Everything's been a sequence of complex, very organic steps that have shaped me to be who I am. It's very hard to name only one. Maybe the recognition that being an Artist is my only option.

Q13:
What's one thing you had to learn the hard way?
A13:

What goes up must go down.

Q14:
What's the best compliment you've ever received?
A14:

It's when people comment on my works and I get the feeling we'd be able to connect.

Q15:
What's the most adventurous thing you've done in your life?
A15:

I'm not much into traditional adventures; I sublimate on the canvas. It might sound boring, but when you reach that state where the (mostly negative) analyzing chatter of your mind falls silent, it becomes a truly adventurous journey.

Q16:
What's a skill you're working on mastering?
A16:

Creating without overthinking. Resurrecting the playful flow state of my younger self.

Q17:
What's one accomplishment you're most proud of?
A17:

When I look back, it's astonishing for me to think about how things have played out since I decided to become a painter.

Q18:
If you weren't an artist, what would you be doing?
A18:

It's hard to imagine, but maybe I'd be a movie director or musician.

All views expressed are solely those of the interviewee and do not represent UntitledDb.
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All comments: 1
RWildes 1 week ago
SO engaging and intelligent, love this interview🌅🌅🌅
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