Artists find a shelter at Dominique’s haven (HÖFN means harbour, haven in Icelandic)

Dominique Poulain lived for a decade in Iceland and never stopped after she left maintaining strong ties with the country she sees as her own, and its people. She has these last years enriched many Icelandic artists’ life, who stayed sheltered in the port of call « HÖFN » in Marseille. Many remember Dominique Poulain, the French woman-and-puppeteer who left her mark on the artistic life in Reykjavik in the 80ies. « I made masks and puppets for cinema, television, theater, advertising. In France, I had worked a lot for puppet theater, and in 1981, I was invited to attend a 3 months training course gathering together « promising » puppeteers [from all over the world] in Charleville-Mézières, where the World Puppet Theatre Festival takes place biennially. I met there Messiana Tómasdóttir, who [certainly] had an influence on my decision to go to Iceland for about three months, which became ten years. I lived in Iceland between 1982-1992 », says Dominique who, to-day, has got her home in Marseille, and founded right next door the HÖFN residence, which many Icelandic artists know of and/or have stayed in and experienced .

The idea takes shape After this period of life in Iceland, Dominique went back to France with her son Logi, born in Iceland, and fell in love in Marseille with Jean who had been her best friend when they were both in high school. « We created HÖFN in 2007, Jean and I, after the idea had been slowly maturing for several years. Between 1992-2007, I only managed to get back to Iceland three times, but on the other hand I invited many Icelandic friends to come and visit us in Marseille, and they did enjoy it », says Dominique. « Another thing influenced our decision to found the HÖFN association and residence : our house is rather big. It is an old farm, built in 1902, may be not exactly beautiful but quite charming. When Jean’s daughter and my son Logi flew the nest, the house seemed too big for us alone and we started providing now and then housing for artists working in Marseille for a short while [actors and dancers mainly]. »

Writing in many ways To-day HÖFN is also a little flat with everything one needs in it : a bedroom, a bathroom, a kitchen, a working corner bordering a nice little garden. « This place has got its privacy, eventhough it is adjoining our own house. People who stay in it may be absolutely on their own, but I am constantly ready to help, assist, give advise in any matter. We receive all year long at HÖFN many types of artists [and /or researchers]. » « At first, I mentioned to Jean my desire to invite writers, poets, translators in residence at HÖFN. From my point of view, the place and its purpose should be linked with litterature, also because the flat had got no workshop, such as a sculptor would need for instance. But then we decided to extend the concept and invite as well musicians, programmers, researchers and theoreticians of all kinds (…) Everybody who is writing in his own way ; people who only need paper and pencil, or a computer to work and create. An artist photographer who has been a resident at HÖFN, said he was writing the town while photographing Marseille. We say about HÖFN it is a writing port of call. »

Höfn ( Harbour) in many ways and meanings « I had immediately this idea it should be called « HÖFN ». Marseille is a huge harbour, we live in the Northern area of the town that have for sure a fairly bad reputation, but we love and stand up for it. All along the coast by our districts, you can see a harbour, an industrial one, not quite as quaint [as the so-called « Old Harbour » in the center of the town]. HÖFN for me, in Icelandic, and English means as well haven, a shelter, a sanctuary, a place where one feels secure as it means harbour, a place for work. This name seemed a right one to express a bound between Marseille and Reykjavik, eventhough most of French people are absolutely unable to pronounce it », says Dominique and laughs. « The name is Icelandic, our association very small, but HÖFN is actually an international residence. As you can see if you have a look at HÖFN website : http://hofn.free.fr/?browse=The%20Residents%20Leave%20a%20Trail, artists and researchers from many different countries have stayes at HÖFN , but these last years we received first of all Icelandic people, some of them more than once. » Dominique says that there is no average length of stay for the residents, most often may be one or two months, but in cannot be in any way longer than four months « It is not forbidden to stay only one week for instance, but in this case it is only in order to breathe in the air of Marseille and the HÖFN residence, to meet us, and wonder : Is this the right place for me to be and work in ? »

New friends and exploratory walks HÖFN plays an important role in making possible for the residents to meet artists and researchers from Marseille [and its surroundings]. « Jean teaches in the Art School of Aix en Provence, and we know many people in Arts and Culture. As soon as the residents arrive I start showing them our district and tell them about its story. Then I have to find out what each resident needs most in order to make his stay at HÖFN and Marseille as worthwhile and meaningful as possible. I often prepare a good meal at our place that we share with one or few friends of us and « our » resident when I think they should meet because they could enrich one another. We invite our residents to come with us to a concert, or any cultural event, and I try to tell them [almost] everyday about something interesting happening in Marseille or it surroundings . HÖFN is also partner and member of a Cooperative composed of inhabitants from the Northern districts of Marseille called : Hôtel du Nord (http://hoteldunord.coop/ ), which is actually the title of a very famous old French film… « There is much History, and many stories in our Northern area, and [among many other things], the cooperative invites people to experience very special urban walks that the inhabitants themselves, real erudites whether they are or not experts or specialists, have built up. Our residents could more than once join in and did enjoy them. »

Iceland is also my country « There is no selection at HÖFN as you have in bigger, more « famous » [and institutional] Writing or Art residences, and we do not want to welcome people because they would be well-known, would have published or produced a lot… If you are young and a budding artist, who had not yet the opportunity to publish/produce anything, or very little, it does not mean that you have no chance to get to be a resident at HÖFN ; we choose our residents as well because we think we have something to offer which might have some value for this specific person, which could broaden his or her experience as an artist or researcher », says Dominique, who wishes that the residents might get some grants from their own country if they can or want to, but has decided long ago she would not use her time begging for doubtful subsidies knowing too well that infernal machine : the French bureaucratic system... « It is why HÖFN residents have to pay a fee [(thus contributing to the life of the association and the maintainance of the little flat and garden)] : 490 euros , including water, electricity, gas, heating, internet, but also laundry and any kind of dayly service HÖFN (Dominique) offers . »

Do you think HÖFN helped you to preserve such a good level of Icelandic? « Iceland is as much my country as France is. I learned this langage [in Iceland] and tried afterwards to keep it as much as possible in me. Quite a lot of Icelanders come to HÖFN now, and it gives me a good opportunity to practice Icelandic. An then, my son lives in Iceland and I have my grand son Úlfur there that I try to visit once a year », says Dominique finally

To know [even] more about HÖFN: www.hofn.free.fr