Q+A with Daniela Fanzoj on The Artwork of the Gun

What makes one thing a murals? It is a query I’m always asking myself once I encounter luxurious items designed with magnificence in thoughts. Till not too long ago I had at all times believed that there have been sure issues that would by no means be thought of artwork. For instance, I by no means thought you would flip a contemporary firearm right into a murals. Properly, till I stumbled upon Johann Fanzoj’s masterful weaponry artwork.

The Artwork of the Gun, as they name it, melds utility and sweetness right into a firearm that’s not solely an inventive undertaking but in addition a standing image. Very similar to the grand complication and tourbillon watches of luxurious Swiss producers, Johann Fanzoj has introduced an analogous magnificence and refinement to the firearm. No element is neglected, and no expense is spared within the creation of their one-of-a-kind items. I cherished their work a lot that I not too long ago sat down with Director Daniela and Patrick Fanzoj to debate the artwork of their weapons, the corporate’s historical past, and their most up-to-date creation — the Leopard assortment.

Inform me a bit about your organization, Johann Fanzoj

Our firm was established in 1790 in Ferlach, Austria, and we glance again on a proud custom of nice firearms craftsmanship that we’ve upheld for eight generations. We’re nonetheless family-owned and whereas we maintain agency to our wealthy heritage of conventional abilities and old-world data, we’re additionally bringing a remarkably new imaginative and prescient to this historic craft.

At the moment we fascinate collectors worldwide by mixing our basic values and excessive aesthetics with unprecedented technical sophistication. We solely produce a small variety of unique searching weapons and rifles every year, and our mannequin vary contains shotguns and rifles – each single, double, bolt actions, and multi-barreled combos. We additionally supply particular person commissions and ideas — all of that are designed, engineered, and constructed completely in our workshop to fulfill our shoppers’ visions.

What are the inspiration behind melding artwork and weapons designs?

Weaponry artwork is considered one of humanity’s oldest types of particular person expression and elaborately adorned weapons have at all times had sturdy symbolic meanings all through historical past. So the inspiration behind our designs was a technique to honor our collective cultural reminiscence, in addition to a technique to protect our conventional data for future generations. At the moment, the five-hundred-year-old artwork of gun-making in Ferlach is listed as UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage as a result of we’re passing on fragile data and craftsmanship abilities to a brand new era.

However extra importantly, we’ve taken the concept of weapons and artwork to a brand new dimension. By no means earlier than have creative initiatives on weapons been so fastidiously crafted and carried out all the way down to the smallest element. We manufacture distinctive mechanical masterpieces and use them as a canvas for capturing tales about life, demise, ardour, searching, and nature — all themes which seem unmasked as in no different métier. Our firearms are true objects of tradition and worth, masterpieces within the true sense of the phrase that honor what has come earlier than and protect that which can nonetheless be misplaced.

Johann Fanzoj was established in 1790 and also you’re nonetheless at the moment run by the identical household. How have you ever maintained the basic heritage established by your ancestors whereas modernizing for the twenty first century?

Thanks, that may be a crucial query. We’re the one luxurious gun-making agency that has taken up the problem of trying to mix the previous and current by way of using conventional abilities paired with state-of-the-art supplies and expertise. Conventional abilities allow us to naturally envision and develop most particular person options whereas fashionable expertise helps a excessive up to date efficiency in our gadgets.

Combining old-world gun manufacturing strategies with fashionable manufacturing permits us to actually attempt for perfection and spend probably the most period of time on finely regulating our mechanical gadgets, identical to one would with a Swiss watch. This type of manufacturing course of additionally permits us to protect all of the outdated crafts which might be near extinction. Engravers, goldsmiths, blacksmiths, and leather-based makers all use our firearms as a canvas for his or her artwork and the mix of their conventional strategies with our fashionable strategies give life to 1 one other.

Purchasers as we speak anticipate a luxurious crafts agency to transcend reviving previous concepts. They wish to see sparks of creativity within the product, and so they wish to be drawn into the method of co-creating one thing private, treasured, and distinctive. That’s our notion of luxurious and the way we honor our heritage whereas modernizing for our shoppers.

You communicate of ultra-customized items; are you able to stroll us by way of the method of what these entail?

Every merchandise we construct is exclusive. We will’t construct greater than twenty items per 12 months. The large initiatives like “The Nice Migration”, DRACON, and The Leopard Set take a number of years to finish. We often create these based mostly on our personal concepts, with out the client, by exploring one explicit theme in a philosophical manner; it’s a mixed effort of the world’s greatest artists and artisanal sources, nationwide and worldwide. They’re one-of-a-kind items.

In case your readers have an interest within the particulars of our metalwork, woodcraft, and engraving you possibly can learn in regards to the course of on our web site

Are you able to inform us a bit about your most up-to-date undertaking, The Leopard, and its beautiful design parts?

The Leopard is a splendid demonstration of workmanship, ability, and creative expertise that’s expressed throughout three completely different weapons: a Fanzoj searching rifle, a pistol, and a nice customized knife. It took us over three years to convey this distinctive undertaking to life. Utilizing a wealth of expertise and craftsmanship from a really excessive stage. Every weapon is roofed with a strikingly life like depiction of the leopard’s pores and skin texture, engraved by fabulous Austrian grasp engraver Richard Meier, one of many biggest metallic artists of our time. Deep-chiseled engraving work of the best element offers depth to the artwork whereas on the identical time making a three-dimensional impact. Inlays of fossilized mammoth enamel with spectacular scrimshaws appear to nearly come alive, as if prepared to leap on the observer. The gathering was created from Circassian walnut root wooden, fossilized mammoth tooth, the best-quality metal, and 24k gold with each bit being embedded in matching leather-based oak instances. Every case was equally adorned with the best handcrafted equipment of fossilized mammoth materials, 24k gold-plated, and a leopard portrait on every lid. This assortment is our firm’s crowning achievement. Although we do hope to outdo ourselves as soon as once more sooner or later.

What units Johann Fonzoj other than different weapon artisans?

Our steady exploratory mindset; our inert curiosity and creativity; and our nice want to create gadgets of timeless aesthetics which outperform ourselves with every new undertaking.

Our huge theme initiatives transcend the mere concept of “ornament”. We discover symbolism by way of our artistry. Life-and-death, predator-and-prey, black-and-white. All are themes we affiliate with searching, and so they’re expressed by way of the opulence of our items and the superb craftsmanship solely Johann Fanzoj can present.