It is a creatively challenging, fascinatingly versatile struggle to wring the form from the material. Sometimes it is physically demanding, but it is always playful. If you can't look at your work in a playful and humorous way, you might have chosen the wrong job.

Every day we try to broaden our understanding of how to combine traditional techniques with the latest technology. A state-of-the-art milling machine does not have the same feeling for stone as a master’s hand with decades of experience, but both can complement each other.

The two are so tightly interwoven that one cannot exist without the other. To me this is a beautiful thing, but it also means that if we don't find enough apprentices in the future, our craft and the region will die out. That's also why passing on my knowledge is so immensely important to me.

Generally speaking yes, but we have managed to counteract the negative trend of the last decades. However, our craft is a diverse art with many specialisations and there are already areas in which the old masters die out without the opportunity to preserve their knowledge.