The first Grand Masters course of 2008 covered the art and techniques of three-dimensional sculpting using a graver. The method, although fairly straightforward, takes time to bring the beautiful design up out of the metal.

The plate shown here is by instructor Philippe Grifnée. The finished sculpted plate is the final demonstration piece that Grifnée completed for this event. The progression photo of this second plate is a very similar design. This piece is nearly complete, lacking just a bit more sculpting and then the final polishing touches to make it professional and lustrous like the final piece.

Notice the differences in the final presentation piece and the in-progress engraving. While in the class with his students, Grifnée worked along with them on the various projects. For many engravers, seeing the steps that lead up to the final piece is always enlightening. It really helps to be able to see an engraving in different steps to measure progress as one learns. This learning experience is an invaluable one throughout an engraver's career — the simple notion of learning hands-on from a master engraver like Philippe Grifnée.