Alumni Focus: Jokum Lind Jensen

When the post arrived this morning I was excited to find a big envelope from Denmark! Inside was a book written by one of our past graduates, Jokum Lind Jensen. The book was written as part of his recent MA submission at Steneby in Sweden.

In his biog, Jokum states:

“I have been drawing my entire life and initially thought I would become a painter or illustrator. However I discovered Blacksmithing in the early 90s and was hooked for life. I trained as an Artist Blacksmith at Hereford College of Arts, England between 1995-97 and set up my own business in the year 2000. There have always been two major interests for me in relation to my work: to understand the craft and refine my skills within it, and to express myself artistically within these parameters. These past 4 years at Steneby completing my BA and MA have been a fantastic journey, which has given me the courage to attempt to undertake the task I present here”.

The book explores the current perception of decorative ironwork within a Scandinavian context and the developing discourse around ways of interpreting and interrogating decorative ironwork. Jokum sets out to answer a number of interesting questions that many Blacksmiths across the world find themselves asking when making work that is site-specific and for historical buildings.

“Is it possible within the current practice of restoration of historical buildings and sites to introduce contemporary interpretations of decorative metal work”?

“How do I create a balance between my artistic ego and the integrity of the historic building/site?”

and finally, “how do I develop a set of methods for working as an artist within a historical reference frame and setting?”

I am looking forward to reading the book more thoroughly and have also emailed Jokum and invited him to visit the College and give a series of talks and presentations.

Del