If you are a fan of the heritage brands of haute joallier or only of the major well-known names then the work of Otto Jakob may not be your cup of tea! Honestly, I had never heard of him or seen his work before I reviewed his book (Otto Jakob: Ripe Fruit) and it did not take me long to become intrigued and astounded by what this man creates in every classification from necklaces, earrings, bracelets, rings, brooches to even cuff links.
If you consider yourself among the cognoscenti of fine jewelry or a self-proclaimed authority on that subject and you do not know of Jakob’s work then you need to do some extra research as well as read this interview and buy his book. Seeing his oeuvre broadens and ignites a different way of viewing and appreciating fine jewelry as well as exponentially expanding one’s knowledge of fine jewelry.
Otto Jakob stands with very artisan jewelers who don’t follow a trend and may not have a specific aspect or signature that places or defines them and slots them into one specific category… think JAR, Taffin de Givenchy, Verdura and possibly even Belperron as each are so multifaceted (pun intended) in how they created their masterpieces. It is only the most discerning and trained eye that could possibly identify every piece that these artists have created. Yes, there are some pieces that are emblematic of each yet the vast majority is comprised of the wild imaginings of the artist which are then turned into reality.
Jeffrey Felner: Can you give us some background as to how you arrived at your profession?
Can you give us some background as to how you arrived Otto Jakob: When
I was a young man, my aspiration was to become an artist, a great one. I
believed that this would take place in the fine arts: painting or sculpture.
At the art school I applied to the class of Georg Baselitz, and early on had this rare opportunity to learn from an artist whose work I admired. I learned a lot from him, both about art and about myself. Finally, I came to the conclusion that my destiny was elsewhere. It was a stressful realization that occupied my thoughts for some time until it culminated in a vision: all of a sudden, there was a burst—a cascade—of jewelry ideas, wild and wonderful and original. It was my future work, yet to be made. Then I finally knew what I wanted to do, and only needed to learn how. From that arose the will to learn from teachers long gone, for I found the work of the living ones too boring and conventional, an impoverished form of expression that used to be much richer.
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JF: You have a unique way of expressing your creativity in terms of subject: what would you say is your favored classification to work in and why? Are they all one of a kind?
OJ: My initial idea was something like this: to learn the old techniques that were already out of use and to achieve a new, rich, modern narrative; analyze and bring old styles into a new context. Over the subsequent four decades, I have developed an independent iconography, my own visual language, a vocabulary, so to speak, in which only I am fluent.
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JF: From where do you draw your inspirations and who do you believe is your target customer and where might one buy your jewelry?
OJ: Much of my work is one-of-a-kind, and the target customer is an international network of art and fine jewelry admirers who follow my development closely. The majority of my pieces is purchased by these collectors. I work with ten people to produce about 100 pieces each year. They can be purchased only directly from me, either at my atelier, or at one of the two fairs where I currently exhibit —TEFAF Maastricht and TEFAF New York Fall. This “routine” has been, of course, recently interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, a circumstance that I find more stimulating than hindering. As an artist, you are led by the ideas that come from the inside rather than the outside influences such as market demands, and by the conviction that these ideas will create the market.
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JF: If you could invite any 5 people to dinner who would they be and why?
OJ: Francis Bacon, Henry Purcell, Prince, Johann Sebastian Bach and Miles Davis because they were and are my most admired artists, composers, and musicians in addition to having the greatest impact on the consistency of my work.
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JF: If you could have any collaboration, who would it be with and why?
OJ: I have no interest in jewelry brands, and neither they in my work. The only collaborations I ever did were with fellow artists such as Jörg Immendorff and Georg Baselitz. For Immendorff I made a small collection of pieces that took inspiration from his own art. It was a personal project for him and his wife, and it was never available commercially. Georg Baselitz has been my very first client, and we have collected each other’s work ever since the very start. So, when he first tried his hand at jewelry, as part of his ‘Darkness, Goldness’ project at the White Cube, his pieces were made at my atelier.
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