Who am I
I was born in Basel in 1948. My zodiac sign is aquarius, and I feel exactly like one. I just about managed to reach A-levels by the skin of my teeth, and my medical studies ended in a flop. I then spent a wonderful year as assistant to a metal sculptor. After that I finished my studies as a teacher. Due to the lack of job offers I was working as a teacher in a school for deaf children in Riehen. Besides this I finished my education as a remedial teacher. This work turned out to be a great challenge. I was able to learn a lot about a child's character (being speechless makes other forms of expression more important). I intensively had to deal with the aspects of being healthy - unhealthy, disabled - not disabled, integrated - excluded.
In 1979, four years after intensive teaching, I took one year off for further education. I travelled through South East Asia for 9 months all on my own. This year turned out to be a revelation. I was living with local people most of the time, far off the tourist tracks, and I learned a lot about their way of living. My European way of thinking was soon changed, and I found great placidity and satisfaction. I learned more from these warm and "simple" people than I learned during the rest of my life. Even today, 20 years after my travels, I can still deeply feel those great experiences. These feelings are helping me not to forget the real values in our fast moving world.
Due to a severe illness I was stuck in Katmandu for several weeks. Being unable to move around, I spent a lot of time with a local goldsmith. He was living in a tiny hut, and I was watching him producing the most beautiful jewellery sitting on the floor and using only very simple tools. I was emotionally touched by his ability, his humour and his modesty. To a European it is normal to have a special tool for every special work. I was astonished how creative he was, and how he managed to work so efficiently with the most simple tools.
After having returned to Basel a new challenge was waiting for me. A group of parents of deaf children wanted to integrate their kids into a group of hearing children. The idea of a partly integrated class of hard of hearing children was born. We managed to convince a teacher in a school with hearing kids, and, even more important, we also convinced the parents of the hearing children of our idea. This resulted in a 3-year co-educational teaching session. Some classes were held together, and with others the children could decide by themselves which class they wished to attend. These were 3 years of most intensive and rejoicing work. The children of both classes got much further.
But after 3 years the standard of both classes was too far apart, and we had to stop this experiment. Parallel to teaching I began to be very interested in the work of a goldsmith. I believed that I would also be able to achieve what my friend in Katmandu managed with his most simple tools. I attended 2 hobby courses to learn the basic techniques. At home I was then working at a very simple table and tried out the newly acquired techniques. This handcraft began to fascinate me more and more, and it began to absorb most of my spare time.
In 1981 my girlfriend, her 5 year old son and I decided to live together. I cut down my work at the school for the deaf children and became a "house husband" spending lots of time with our son and investing more time in my work as a goldsmith. In 1987 we found an ideal place to combine our living- and working areas. I was able to rent a large studio right next to our small and comfortable apartment. I continued training myself, mostly through books and by trial and error. In one way I already felt like a goldsmith, but on the other hand I suffered from inferiority feelings due to not having had a proper training. It took a lot of courage to match up with "proper" goldsmiths. But my knowledge and my self-confidence grew, and I felt the great desire to become an autonomous goldsmith at last.
Since 1989 I am leading the jewellery courses at the Klubschule Migros Basel. Together with my colleagues we managed to establish and extend these courses. It is my concern to pass on my knowledge as well as my enthusiasm for this wonderful profession to others. I therefore also keep on demonstration the work of a goldsmith at public occasions as well as with my "travelling table".
Today I am happily married and live with my family in a sweet little fairy tale like house. I have tremendous pleasure in my work as a self-dependent goldsmith with a studio of my own. Since 1986 I regularly participate in national and international exhibitions. I also try to have 1 - 2 smaller exhibitions a year in my own studio, often with a guest artist working in another trade. I know today that I am a real goldsmith. And hardly anybody is interested to know what kind of education I have had. I am still as fascinated in my profession as I was in 1979 in Katmandu when I had great pleasure in watching my friend doing his work.
