HofArc Wow’s Architects at Colorado Expo

“Extremely flattered,” was the reaction of HofArc President Matthew Hofmann to the exclusive invitation by AIA Expo organizers. “At first, I didn’t realize the magnitude of the invitation,” Matthew said. “Turned out, we were the only Airstream designers in the country who were invited.”

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) invited Hofmann Architecture asked HofArc to show ‘n’ tell their Airstream designs at the 2013 National Convention and Design Exposition held June 20-22 at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver.

Matthew and his partner/ father Wally displayed one of their completed Airstream renovations to more than 18,000 attendees in the middle of the expo hall. “We couldn’t have been positioned in a better spot,” added Wally. “We were adjacent to the Café & Lounge in a highly visible location that attracted thousands of attendees and exhibitors over the course of three days.”

HofArc’s modern leanings and clean lines were a big hit with the Architectural community. “AIA Conventioneers especially liked our idea of building nightly rental Airstreams hotels, such as the Santa Barbara Auto Camp and upcoming urban spaces,” said Wally.

The humor wasn’t lost on the surprising display of a shiny vintage trailer. “It was fun to see attendees walk up to us and ask, ‘What’s an Airstream doing in the middle of the AIA Expo?’ We’d all get a good laugh,” added Wally. “One well-seasoned expo Architect said we were the most creative exhibit he’d ever seen at an AIA show.”

According to event organizers, Colorado is the furthest west the show will get for a number of years. “If we had a price tag on it we could have told it 10 times,” said Matthew. “But this Airstream was already spoken for, by a client from Wyoming.” (See Wyoming Ranch House blog).

Expo attendees were able to tour the HofArc design in person with the designer, ask questions, and experience the Airstream firsthand.

The AIA National Convention is the industry’s most comprehensive national event attracting the nation’s leading architects and front line design professionals. Many Architects earn continuing education credits as well as learning about the products, technologies, and innovations that inform their designs and set the course for the building industry.