NEW ZEALAND
Richard Van Dijk



Is a knifemaker who lives and works on the Otago Peninsula near Dunedin, New Zealand.
He was born and brought up in the Netherlands where he trained as a Goldsmith at Schoonhoven and qualified in 1976, in 1971 he spent a year travelling in New Zealand. This made his mind up to return and he emigrated to New Zealand in 1979.
He started knife making in 1980 after finding a book and have been making knives part-time ever since, knife making had always fascinated him but he thought he was born in the wrong age.
Since he came to New Zealand he has been employed and self-employed as a goldsmith, over this period of time he trained four apprentices in the jewellery trade.
In 1995 he met a blacksmith who introduced him to forge welding, he got the bug and he has mainly made Damascus (pattern welded) knives since.
In 1998 and 1999 he travelled to the Melbourne Knife Show where, for the first time, he saw Damascus steel other than his own.
Other shows he has attended are:
• 1996 Palmerston North Knife show (His first)
• 2001 Palmerston North Knife show
• 2001 The First Auckland Custom Knife show
• 2002 The Second Auckland Custom Knife Show
• 2003 The Third Auckland Custom Knife Show (Best Historical piece, Best Bowie)
• 2004 The Fourth Auckland Custom Knife Show (Best Art knife, Best Period piece, Best Fighter, Best Forged)
• 2004 New York Custom Knife Show
Knife making in New Zealand is still in its beginning, although there are some very good makers there are not to many yet. Richard has been part of the setting up of the New Zealand Knife makers Guild.
Since 1996 he has been a part-time tutor in jewellery at and since 2001 a part time Tutor in Metals exploration at the Design Department of Otago Polytechnic.