Haus of Dust

Enter into the world of The Abysm, a quaint space located somewhere between here and the beyond, where you will encounter the spirits of those who reflect upon their time spent on this Earth.

Haus of Dust is a new coming-of-age fantastical docu-mixed media installation by Gabriel G Torres.

The story follows a young man, G, writing a story about eight spirits meeting in a bar called “The Abysm”. In this bar, spirits and souls gather to release their last words before they can move into the afterlife. G writes this story to learn how to cope with his personal journey as an immigrant, a gay man, and a substance user. The story touches on themes of trauma, violence, spirituality, grief, sacred South American plants, and finally, overcoming with resilience.

In this ethereal immersive environment, Gabriel invites humans grieving abuse and addiction, to release the pain within a story driven hyper sensorial experience.

  • Gabriel G Torres
    Lead Artists
  • Taylor Edelle Stuart
    Lead Artists
  • Aoshuang Zhang
    Lead Artists
  • Victoria Bain
    Lead Artists
  • Patricio Jijon
    Lead Artists
  • The Tank NYC
    Producer
  • Gabriel G Torres
    Producer
  • gabriel g torres
    Director
  • gabriel g torres
    Writer
  • vanessa rappa
    Key Collaborators
  • Project Type:
    Performance, Installation, Interactive Film
  • Minimum Runtime:
    1 hour 10 minutes
  • Maximum Runtime:
    1 hour 15 minutes
  • Average Runtime:
    1 hour 13 minutes
  • Variable Runtime Details:
    Audiences are given an uv pen at the beginning of the show, when the show ends, audiences are invited to write on the panels where the show is projected, depending on the audience, this may take a couple minutes or several.
  • Completion Date:
    August 28, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    30,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Student Project:
    No
  • RE:ENCUENTRO (ONLINE) - Latino Theater CO
    Los Angeles
    United States
    November 22, 2021
    Official Selection
  • Teatro Circulo
    New York City
    United States
    June 29, 2021
  • film gate
    miami
    United States
    November 29, 2023
Director Biography - gabriel g torres

Gabriel Torres is a mestizo - indigenous queer interdisciplinary artist from Colombia. Gabriel’s work focuses in community driven, tech inspired, spiritual performances of grieve and healing. gabrielgtorres.com

Selected Residencies: Create Change, Laundromat Project, 2021; AIR, Loisaida INC, 2020. Fellowships: Flahertly Seminar, University Settlement, MDOCS, Skidmore College, 2021, EMERGENYC, Hemisphere Institute, 2020.

Education: (current) MFA, IDMP, Arizona State University. MA in Media Studies, The New School, BA in Media Studies, The New School. Taller Profesional de Artistas, Creative Capital. Meisner, One Year Certificate, The Neighborhood Playhouse Theater. Riggio’s Honors Democracy Writing, The New School.

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Director Statement

Haus of Dust was created at a point in my life when I couldn't figure out how to see the light; I had been forced into consuming crystal meth by sexual assault, and I had been dealing with the repercussion of the physical and spiritual violence I experienced. An overdose, and five days in a comma, with two heart reanimations daily, after being found dead for one minute in a hotel room + several outpatient programs, A.A. groups, therapist, medications... I left the hospital with a physically traumatized body and a craving for words body. It's no surprise to me anymore, this project lives within a ghostly ethereal subliminal space.

The story came to be as an outcry to transcend and transform this energy into something else, yet, Haus of Dust became so much more; the representation of coming together to create with my artist friends who i deeply respect, a way of discovering potential within limitations, I pushed myself to develop this project as an installation, because it couldn't be completed as a play during covid. Gorilla style filmmaking, I managed to produced and film all content by myself, with the assistance of two P.A.

This immersive world is a haus of unconious longing and grief, I hope by sensorially experiencing Haus of Dust, the audiences reconnect to those sharpen forgotten fragments lingering within their hearts, hopefully after, surrendering them and releasing them.

I want to turn this project as an activation to gather communities towards de-stigmatizations and bonding, i believe addiction is unshaped by the shaping of our relationships, and the nourishing of them. And while it may be a naive, artistic dream, I believe addiction can be cured, by the reconnection of our spiritual selves with nature, and the immensity of experiencing presence.