Sneakers & Apparel at Sneakersnstuff (SNS) | Sneakersnstuff.com

SNS meets:

Göran Kling (Artist and Jewelry Maker)

Meet Göran Kling, the Stockholm-based artist, and jewelry maker is part of the extended SNS fam, designing unique retail objects for our stores around the world, obviously handcrafted by the man himself in his workshop south of Stockholm. Being obsessed with jewelry from an early age, Göran turned his passion into his job, which brought him worldwide attention by brands like adidas and rap superstar ASAP Rocky. But enough from us now, see the images from our studio visit and read the interview with Göran Kling below.

1/1

SNS: Please introduce yourself and what you do Göran: My name is Göran Kling, and I´m an artist and jewelry maker.

SNS: At what point did you commit to taking a career path with jewelry? It's a brave industry to get into and no doubt very competitive Göran: I have been obsessed with jewelry for as long as I can remember, my first memories are of silver. I always knew I wanted to work with this, but it wasn't a straight path. I started as a traditional goldsmith and learned the craft but when I was finished with the education and started working it was much less creative than I had thought, mostly the same stuff over and over. Wedding rings and repairs. So I quit my job and applied for art school. I had always been drawing a lot so thought I could be a graphic designer but I´m color blind and extremely bad with computers, so I started to make jewelry again, but differently than before. When I didn't have to worry about the rules of traditional goldsmithing, it was fun to make jewelry again. I also had all those years of fabrication practice, so it came natural to me.

SNS: The stuff you make is loud, personal and sometimes even with a political message. The opposite to what one would call “Scandinavian.” But here you are, in Stockholm, where do you get your inspiration from? Göran: Haha yes! I'm no fan of this toned-down minimalistic IKEA-version of Scandinavian design. Though it was once political too, in the 70ties jewelers like Torun Bulow Hube was making a point of using less precious materials and more simple designs in order to make her jewellery available for a broader audience and not just the wealthier few. But over time this idea has become a commercial gimmick rather than the radical statement it once was. Sweden looks a lot different now than it did 50 years ago, we´re now this rich mix of cultures, but somehow that doesn't show in our design. I find a lot of inspiration in people I meet in my everyday life in Stockholm.

SNS: How long did it take to craft your design style? Your work is truly original. Göran: Thanks! I´m not sure exactly, in one way I think I have always been doing the same thing, but it kind of took off around five years ago. I had been away for a year working in Malaysia, and during that year I didn't make any jewelry at all. When I came back home I was so happy about making stuff again I just started to produce things like crazy. It was so much fun to be back in the workshop. I think it rubbed off on the jewelry.

SNS: How do you decide who to work with? We liked your work with adidas a few years back... Göran: It's a blessing to be able to choose who to collaborate with. For me, it's always about personal interaction with people. I usually work alone in my studio, so the co-labs become this great way of making things together with other people. If the energy is right, it can become more significant than the sum of its parts. adidas came to me when I was fresh out of school with an idea of adding a piece of jewelry to the Gazelle shoe that was re-releasing. We decided to do 200 individual castings off the sole of the shoe. I spent that whole summer in my first studio basement, but I was happy with the result in the end

SNS: You have worked with the Sneakersnstuff stores in Berlin, New York and soon to be opened LA. How do you translate your ideas for jewelry into a design for retail? Göran: It's been exciting for me to make objects instead of jewelry. With jewelry, you always think about the person who is going to wear it. So I try to imagine the store as a person also, what kind of vibe the store would have if it were a person. I like working on the Sneakersnstuff concepts because they take in the place where the store is located. Rather than placing an already set concept in a city, they consider the atmosphere and history of the place an adapt to it. That's similar to making jewelry I think.

SNS: We also saw ASAP Rocky is a fan of your work, how did you guys connect? Göran: I have to thank Instagram for that. It was when I was still a student and hadn't put out any jewelry in a while. But somehow, he had seen a ring that he liked so his management reach out and asked if I could make one in his size

SNS: You think you know someone based on their sneaker choice, what does a person’s jewelry say about them? Göran: Everything! I mean I'm such a jewelry nerd so of course I always notice. But jewelry is an expression of identity. Jewelry doesn’t have a practical function like clothing or shoes. It's kind of only there to express and communicate who you are to other people.

SNS: Nice sneakers by the way.

1/7