1 mins
MY SPACE
A peek into lutherie workshops around the world
LUTHIER MARTIN KUHN LOCATION Diessenhofen, Switzerland
ALL PHOTOS MARTIN KUHN
Diessenhofen is a small village on the border of Switzerland and Germany, a few miles from the much larger town of Schaffhausen. I came here in 1979, soon after completing an apprenticeship with the luthier Hans Wenger. This seemed like a good place to set up a workshop, as there were no other violin makers in Diessenhofen; it has good transport links and the village is full of history: there are several buildings from the Middle Ages and the one housing my workshop was built around 1580. In times past it was used for barrel making, and when I moved in, the workshop area had been standing empty for years. At that point I was much more focused on making new instruments, and thought that working in a small town would be better for that, as I wouldn’t be swamped with repair work. However, as time’s gone on I’ve taken on more restorations and made fewer new instruments as a result.
The space in the photo is around 20 sq m, but I have other areas, such as a bandsaw room, in other parts of the house. My main workbench is the one in the window, so I get plenty of natural light and passers-by can see me at work. The tools I use most frequently are in the drawer to the right of the workbench; it might look chaotic, but I always have a good idea of where everything is.
The planing bench in the middle of the room comes from the old Brienz Violin Making School during the time of Adolf König. It was while studying there that I met my wife Michèle, who used to work with me at the bench. On the wall to the side you can see some of the building’s original 16th-century timbers. The bench to the right is the one I used to give my apprentices to work at, but I haven’t had anyone for a while now. Finally, the bench nearest the camera is where I carry out bow repairs.
INTERVIEW BY CHRISTIAN LLOYD