Forged knives by Igor Kampman with a passion for ArtCrafts creating stories by making knives.
Seeking balance in the simplicity and rusticity of a ‘Brut de Forge’ style knife made with old Japanese methods mixed with western modernism and a  wabi-sabi state of mind.
Making use of reclaimed and new materials, creating combinations some i seek out in the outdoor world of the lowlands from the Netherlands.

Igor Kampman, a Dutch bladesmith and autodidact polymath artist with a passion for forged knives in a 'brutdeforge' style.

I am a part time knife smith and started forging knives in 2007 after being inspired by a documentary of Ron Hoods (Woodmaster) with Tai Goo and Tim Lively about neo tribal knife making.

 

The first knife i forged with simple tools on a railroadtrack in a campfire while i whas in a wheelchair after a car excident in New Zealand and got infected with the knife forging virus.

Since than i needed to learn more about metallurgy and get deeper in understanding steel and forging blades.

I followed some workshops and a year swordmaking study at Smederij Atelier Alkmaar from Dave en Rens van Wijngaarden, were i forge 3 Japanese Ainu swords to understand and learn more about Japanese forging teckniques. These techniques i use now for my own work. 

I am lucky to meet some other great knife makers who help me out and learn from like my friend Alessio Salsi, but at the end you have to do it yourself find your way, grow, learn and get better.

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Besides forging knives i am a tattooist with my own studio(Blackinktatau)and together with my friend we have a small bushcraft school (PolderBushcraft) where we teach adults and children how to make their lives comfortable in the wild.

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With the experience as a bushcraft instructor and being out there since a child with my father and grandfather ( one side of my family who were gamekeepers), i have a better connection with using and making knives that are good for bushcraft, hunting, survival but also for kitchen use.

It takes minimum 3 day's till a month to create and finish a unique knife depending on style, size and materials used.

I am inspired by old crafts, nature, tribalism, tales from the past and things i find that i give a new life.
Kampman knives are rustique workers with character, made by hand with passion from new and reclaimed materials in the lowlands of the Netherlands.

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Each knife starts with choosing a piece of steel that has the right specs for that were the knife is going to be used for.

Than i decide a shape, style and size while or before i start to forge.

I use an old school coal and gas forg and al knives are forged by hand.

Making a knife is a growing proces, after forging you need to profile it, harden it and temper it,..than it's ready to finetune and making a handle. 

Handle material and pins are depending on the look and feel of the knife.

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I like to create stories with my knives and combine age of material to where it comes from and how old the material is, this makes it more personal and unique.

When the knife is sharpened and finished it's ready to make a sheath for it.

All my sheaths are handmade and handstitched to make the best fit and use for the knife.

The leather i use for the sheaths come from reclaimed/recycled leather or new.

I don't do custom request knives, all my knives are 1 of a kind and when they are ready you can check them out on the 'Available' page.

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Thanx, 'Keep forging ahead"

Igor Kampman.

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