Unfolding: The World of Art Knives

[Lorien]

My good friend, Dr. David Darom, asked me if I was interested in taking a look at his new book, The World of Art Knives and sharing my impressions of his book with my this and other internet forums.

Being a rank neophyte to custom and handmade knives, I was surprised to be asked to do this job. I have only scratched the surface by way of Dr. Darom's previous books and through these various internet forums. Why David would ask someone as wet behind the ears, who's never even been to a proper knife show, and whose only 'knife network' is the internet forum, remains a happy mystery to me.

Please take a note that this is not a 'review' of the book. I am not a professional reviewer and I am most certainly biased. My motivation is to help my friend promote his work, and to have fun. That's the straight goods, don't forget!

At this point, I have not yet opened the book. The pictures you see following are all that I have seen up to this point.

I hope that you will accompany me on my journey of discovery, as this thread will grow and grow. I have full access to the entire content of this book, and will add more pictures and the like over time.

My very first impression is that the cover is just beautiful. It features a knife by my all time favourite Art knife Artist, Wolfgang Loerchner! Also, the quality of the binding is excellent and with proper care and maintenance, this book will provide years if not generations of enjoyment. Just like a knife!

Please stay tuned!

 

[Indian George]

Sweeeet!!!!!2thumbs

 

[Lorien]

I've had a chance to thumb through this book from back to front, and front to back.

I cannot stress too much, how clear, correct and outstanding the photographs in this book are. Even compared to Dr. Darom's past books, this one raises the bar.

Here is one image that really jumped out at me;

You can see how much thought has gone into the layout, and to the digital refinement of the images. Truly breath taking.

If you are worried that I will give away too much of this book and ruin it for you, let me just say this; there are hundreds of pictures of knives and people in this book, and secondly, there is simply NO COMPARISON between what you can see on your computer screen, and the printed page. Other than the obvious fact that they are the same image. The printed page is far superior in almost every way.

Another thing that I think I'll talk more about as I discover the ins and outs of this complex book, is the people. This is not just a book about knives. This is a book about, in Steven Garsson's words, 'Knife People'. The lines between the maker and his/her patrons in blurred, such as in real life, and that is the point.

There is a great deal of depth in Dr. Darom's latest creation, and I think I'm going to have to dive from the upper platform in order to experience the entirety of it!

 

[Bruce Bump]

You are the perfect person to preview his book. Who made that cool dagger on the right? 2thumbs

 

[Lorien]

Bruce- thank you man! I'm so flattered!

Well, I am a happy and lucky guy, reclining after a hard day's work, avoiding the news of beheadings and other inhumanities- by absorbing myself into the comforting bosom of The World of Art Knives!

Juergen Steineau is just an amazing Artist, and his knives are beyond Dada and a lot of that new school avant garde movement, and that's saying a lot in the Art world in terms of forwardness of thinking. Pretty significant for a knife maker to be occupying that realm of Artistic value.
That stuff is somewhere inside most people's Artistic comprehension, even if they don't know it. And usually they don't.

Here's that "knife people" excerpt. There's a long, personal and interesting story which follows, but 'living knives' really struck a chord in me.
Living, knives.

I felt David's garden metaphor to speak volumes about his approach to the work that he does. Seeing pictures of his family when they're together makes me think that in a previous life perhaps he was a farmer.

There are some really great pictures of knife makers in here. Not your contrived studio shots, but really nice candid photos that help you to see inside their motivations.
Amayak Stepanyan

Wolfgang Loerchner features prominently in this book. His body of work is astounding to me. I feel that aliens came to earth, added something amazing to Wolfgang's brain and left our planet with an amazing knfe Artist behind to show us all the path. Obviously, whatever was added to his brain has a genetic code to be passed down, because his daughter is making knives of similar amazing creativity.

And then I got up, went to my Man Hole and admired my beauties!

I'm planning on putting in a request for some more of Dr. Darom's pictures tomorrow and I'll follow up with some of them shortly after.

Have a good night!

 

[hidn45]

You can't go wrong with a picture book from the good Dr.! I pull them out time and again, both for inspiration & for entertainment....

randy

 

[Lorien]

A knife is an ultimate evidence of humanity.
Humans make them.
Humans use them.
A knife symbolizes the duality of our reality- on the one hand sustaining life, on the other, taking it.

And such is the dissemination of handmade knives. A circular relationship between those who produce and those who consume. A knife is born, and then locked away. Never to be seen again.

David Darom is changing that with his books. He is giving life to knives which might otherwise never see the light of day.

As you've seen, there are some great pictures of people in this book, and here are some of those pictures;

Here are two knives that reached out of the book and grabbed me by my throat. Just amazing.

I don't have any really burning desire to own lots of high end knives. These books pretty much fill my need to know that knives like these exist and to draw from the inspiration that they fill me with.

 

[Oliver Mendl]

thanks for sharing, that definitly fills a part of the gap from the last of the weyer-book's to today. great, its a book to have for sure!

 

[Indian George]

Who made that cool dagger on the right? 2thumbs

Some Turkey that we all know. HEHEHEHE!!!!

 

[Lorien]

I've been going through the book, with my camera, and I've been picking out some details which are interesting to me.

The decision to only include portions of David's pictures was based on my interest in generating some mystery for you. There are a great many photos in this book, all of exceptional quality that I will give you a small taste of.

Other than David color correcting my pictures, please keep in mind that these pictures are ones that I took OF THE BOOK. They are not originals.

Test your knowledge, and see if you know whose knives are pictured! Make it fun!

I'll be trickling out these pictures, 10 at a time and have a total of 98 for you to enjoy, (or not- if that's the case, please let me know!).

 

[KCSteve]

Hey, quick question for you - how much money should I be bringing to BLADE for my copy of this impressive volume?

Just working on laying out my budget.

 

[Lorien]

Insight.
NOT easy work!

You gotta LOVE it!

 

[Lorien]

I love looking through David's books with my five-ish year old daughter.
She's gotten really good at differentiating black lip from gold lip and can spot tortoise shell at a glance and is almost always right when it comes to stag.

Unfortunately, one of the outcomes of sharing your hobby with your child is the inevitability of stuff getting wrecked. It is important to breathe deeply and count to ten, remembering that things are just things and that family time trumps one's individual desire to maintain one's stuff.

Alas, my new book received its first damage, and I have reconciled myself to the fact that it will never look new again. That's ok! The important thing is that my kid loves it and felt bad about what happened because she was sad that the book was torn, not because I was upset, which I wasn't. I happen to wreck my stuff all the time.

Here's some more of David's pictures. Please note the sunny smile on Steven Garsson's face! Just makes you want to buy the guy a beer.

I happen to have a thing for Italian design. I was very happy to see such a great section of this book devoted to Italian knife makers. Pierluigi Peroni must be quite a hero in the Italian knife making world, but he should also be a hero to the rest of us because, as a collector, he has managed to bring Italian made knives to the world. Elevating his countrymen, and the rest of us by exposing us to their work.

More to come soon!

 

[Lorien]

 

[Lorien]

as I was gazing again through the book this evening, it struck me how clear and perfect the images in it are. Especially compared to a computer screen.

Any guesses as to who and what was pictured in my last post?

 

[Bruce Bump]

I know that one handsome guy grinding a blade but who is the last fella?

 

[Lorien]

the godfather of Italian knife collecting- Pierluigi Peroni.
The man took the Italian custom cutlery business and helped boost it to its current amazing level.

 

[Lorien]

Here is a nice crop of crops! I love being a photo farmer!

the rawhide tanto that Tim Hancock made has got to be one of the coolest knives I've laid eyes upon. Keep in mind, of course, that the photos in the book are WAY better than the ones you'll see here.

 

[Lorien]

Well, folks, that about wraps up your preview of The World of Art Knives.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures, and seriously, there is so much more that can be said about this book, but it's best you find out for yourself so YOU can say those things! Hopefully to people who may not know about custom knives.

When you do get the book, it's a great experience showing someone for the first time, the world WE live in

 

[Bruce Bump]

Thanks much Lorien for putting your thoughts and all the pictures here. It was enjoyable and I'm looking forward to getting my own copy.