Paracosms | Cabinets of Wonder

New assemblage works by Troy Hourie

A PARACOSM is a detailed imaginary world or fictional universe. Paracosms are thought generally to originate in childhood and to have one or numerous creators. The creator of a paracosm has a complex and deeply felt relationship with this subjective universe, which may incorporate real-world or imaginary characters and conventions. Commonly having its own geography, history, and language, it is an experience that is often developed during childhood and continues over a long period of time, months or even years, as a sophisticated reality that can last into adulthood. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paracosm)

In a paracosm one learns how to take a thought or idea and rotate it in order to think about it from the other side. This allows one to, later on in life, put themselves in another's shoes, or remove oneself from a singular embedded point of view to another. It is when an individual takes their point of view and another's point of view and find the delta's between them that they can be the most innovative. Research has shown that the most creative kids, the kids who turn out to be artists or programmers and make up the creative class, have the most paracosmic activity. (http://cyborganthropology.com/Paracosmic_Immersion)

Troy is an installation artist and scenographer. His visual art practice revolve around themes of wonder, spectatorship, immersion and intermediality. Interarts works include: Escape to Beira, ARTErra Portugal, Apparitions Attic, Arteles Finland, and Static Apnea, Performance Arcade, NZ. Art commissions: The Wisdom Tree,Glimmerglass Festival and Espreitar Tondela, Arterra, Tondela, Portugal. His work has been exhibitited internationally including Toronto, London, Prague, Netherlands, New York. His artworks have been supported by Ontario Arts Council and Canada Arts Council grants. His next major exhibition is Apparitions at the Aurora Cultural Centre in October 2018.  Scenographer for 300+ productions for various off-Broadway, regional and opera companies across the USA, Canada and internationally; including Glimmerglass Festival, The New Victory, New York Theatre Workshop, Cherry Lane Theatre, Brooklyn Academy of Music, The Guthrie and Classical Theatre of Harlem. Troy recently directed and designed the digital scenography for Philip Glass’opera, The Fall of the House of Usher, Mannes.

Website:http://troyhourie.com/