Claudia Christl

Silversmith

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To be functional and unique

Claudia is most interested in tableware and table culture
She creates both everyday objects and jewellery
The most important thing to her is to achieve unity of material and form

Claudia Christl studied goldsmithing, silversmithing, and then industrial design at the Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design in Halle/Saale. In 1996 she set up her own studio, and for thefollowing six years worked as chief designer at Wilkens Silver Manufacture. These successive studies and work experiences allowed her to create both jewellery and everyday objects with minimalist forms, elegant and simple at the same time. Today, Claudia is particularly interested in daily tableware culture, which adorns and enhances our everyday life. Claudia's bowls, cups, salt bowls, and cutlery are handmade. Her signature aesthetic is restrained, classical, functional, and unpretentious, yet impossible to miss. She believes "the objects we see and use every day can be extraordinary."

Interview

How did you become interested in gold and silversmithing?
By accident, actually. I was a good student, I could have gone anywhere, but from a young age, I was very fond of crafting things with my hands and making watercolours. It so happened that an artisan I knew invited me to study. When I started training, I very quickly realised that this was where I really belonged.
What does tradition mean to you?
For me, durability is important. Table objects and cutlery I create last for a long time. I want to create objects that can be used in existing interiors. On the other hand, handmade and traditional techniques are also important to me. I do not think objects should be bound to fashions too much. I like timeless designs.
Could you name your source of inspiration?
I do not have one source of inspiration. I go through life with my eyes open. I am interested in many things – culture, nature, and many aspects of the world.
What would you say is your favourite subject?
Cutlery. After training as a silversmith and goldsmith, I studied design in Halle at Burg Giebichenstein, where I got even more into tableware culture. I was very interested in what we have on the table and its role in our daily lives. It is the task of the designer to bring material and form into an authentic and sensually stimulating harmony.

Claudia Christl is an expert artisan: she began her career in 1991 and she started teaching in 2020