09 Oct Meet Ken Stolpmann
Ken is a very rare combination of accomplished artist, craftsman, world-class boatbuilder and designer. To see his work in person is awe-inspiring and he brings tremendous talent and experience to whomever he’s working with.
After 20+ years of living and building boats in the States, Ken’s back home again in Auckland, New Zealand. Ken’s boat building and fabrication career spans more than 38 years and encompasses all form of high-end composite and wood construction, pattern making & casting, metal fabrication, machining and even wood and composite bicycle building. Within the past few years Ken’s added CAD design to his repertoir and has been doing some beautiful work in the custom marine and automotive arena.
Ken’s built and restored many boats and has won national awards including: Best In Class at Lake Tahoe, CA 2016, Bay Harbor, MI 2016 & 2017 and Hessel, MI 2016. Out of the blue he’ll get a call from clients the world-over to pack his tools and fly to remote locations to effect and oversee the repairs to their damaged yachts.
As we both share a common love of design, custom cars, boats and engines working alongside Ken for many years has been very rewarding and a lot of fun, and the fun doesn’t stop now that he’s half a world away. With the power of the internet Ken and I will continue to collaborate on design projects and common interests. An added bonus, Marga and I now have a great excuse to visit New Zealand.