Its easy to dismiss things that either don't interest you. Its equally easy to ignore the depth of pure science, technical development, engineering knowledge and capital investment that goes into even the most banal and everyday objects. There are people who are incredibly skilled in the most obscure of industries and yet they are unrepresented. They work silently and quietly, obsessively even. Seeing the studio at Guten Biken was really exciting. Impressive enough was the huge range of tools, machinery and kit accumulated to be able to manufacture bicycle components, but more engaging in a way was the passion the team had for the craft and for learning. I with a deep respect for the archival in the bike world and for excellence in engineering the team reassemble from components to make customs bikes. They source older models from online sources and disassemble for parts. While the complexity was overwhelming at first, I definitely wanted to learn about how they work and some day be able to work with this level of machining. Long apprenticeships are necessary in Germany to be qualified to work with these skill sets so for a sculptor or a jeweller, collaboration is essential and education on the job I figure is the way to learn about what is possible. This has made me think seriously about my upcoming study breaks and what I might be able to do in term of work experience within specific trades. This was so worthwhile...The coffee was great too!
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