KASPAR HAMACHER

"Art anchors us"

Kaspar Hamacher’s wooden objects and furniture cannot be put into a figurative drawer. On his website, Kaspar has given his works deliberately mundane names, so that no one is tempted to interpret them according to a predetermined title imposed by someone else. Everyone should be able to view his objects in their own personal way and recognise in them whatever they themselves wish to see. Each person should have the freedom to interpret what the object is or means to them. The work speaks directly to the viewer, without being forced into a predefined concept or line of thought.

Even in his creative process, Kaspar keeps his own ideas about a piece open. It is a pure process of discovery that unfolds naturally during the act of making. As he works, the object often reveals facets he had not anticipated — and he simply follows them. “We have to adapt to nature, not the other way round,” he says. He works intuitively, searching for the beauty that already lies dormant in each piece. Kaspar draws out the unique character of every object, without fear and with sheer joy in creation.

Kaspar became aware of wood as a material at a very early age. As the son of a forester, he grew up in and with the forest. His first creations he made and carved from roots, selling them at school. “At the Waldorf school, you were allowed to do that back then,” Kaspar laughs. When he later studied product design, he was advised against working with wood — it was considered outdated. Inspired by the works of sculptor Constantin Brâncuși, Kaspar experimented with stone for a while. But it soon became clear to him that he worked far better with wood. It was much easier to shape and to work with using tools. “Wood is my passion, and I always wanted to work with it,” Kaspar says.

At the time, many people told him: you could do this, you could do that. “Ultimately, you can do anything. The real question is whether you want to,” he reflects. Despite resistance, he never allowed himself to be diverted from his path and remained true to himself. He was always surrounded by people who supported his work, giving him strength and helping him to stay the course.

Born in Eupen, Kaspar sources the wood for his works from the surrounding region, along the Belgian–German border. He is especially interested in trees that have already fallen, as well as so-called deadwood. These dried trunks can be processed far better into furniture or art objects. “Living trees contain far too much moisture in the trunk,” he explains.

For Kaspar, art plays a crucial role in our world — it serves as a kind of connecting link between all groups of people. It is partly intellectual work, yet accessible to everyone, whether rich or poor, he says. Kaspar recalls the painting by Raphael — with angels and the Madonna — that hung above his bed in his childhood room. “Art gives us support and a foundation; it shows us that everything is possible, that we have no limits, and that we should always go a step further,” he says.

And each of his pieces carries something supportive within it — like a “rock in the surf, showing us how deeply connected we are with all living beings and with nature…”

Find out more about Kaspar´s work here