Ulla & Martin Kaufmann

Silversmith

©Martin Kaufmann

©Dieter Schohl

©Barczewski

©H.P.Hoffmann

When two become one

Ulla and Martin create everything together
Their creations are opulent yet simplistic
They have developed their own techniques for working with gold

The story of Ulla and Martin Kaufmann is remarkable in many ways, but most importantly it is a story of two people that can only be told as if they were one. Both were born in Hildesheim in 1941, where they still live and work. Both have a traditional education in goldsmithing and silversmithing. Both have reached the status of master artisan. And together they have created an oeuvre that is at once an individual and a collaborative expression of the idea of “doing everything together”. Paradox is a key element of their creations of the last decade, which can be described as being simultaneously opulent and simplistic. Ulla and Martin Kaufmann have received numerous awards and many of their creations can be found in private and public collections.

Interview

©Hatzius

©Barczewski

Do you have a signature style?: Early in our creative practice, we parted from what is commonly understood as tradition in order to realise the ideas we had in mind. We developed our own techniques for forging gold and shaping larger vessels in order to fulfil our creative desires. What begins in the mind is passed on to the hands.
What special techniques do you use?: We work with gold that is as thin as materially possible, while keeping its traits of flexibility and durability. We like to experiment with gold's properties and find innovative ways of transforming the material which result in unusual creations.
Why can your work be interpreted as paradoxical?: The paradox is just a result of the categories in which we are used to thinking. By uniting supposedly opposing expressions in one work, we question those categories and the paradox they create.
What stirs your imagination?: A fascination for the material itself; gold has a very strong presence. Also, especially in recent years, our in-depth involvement with the work of sculptors Richard Serra, Donald Judd and Eduardo Chillida.

Ulla & Martin Kaufmann are master artisans: they began their career in 1978 and they started teaching in 1990