70 Year old project.....part 2

[Marcus Hunt]

continued from; 70 Year old project nears completion

Sorry, we're limited to 4 pictures per thread. Here are the other 4 photos of the 'new' Atkin (No 2) gun engraved by me, using the original design of scrollwork but cut in my style.

No 2

Grouse

Pheasants with a woodcock in winter woodland scene

Flushing pheasants

Woodcock on top lever

 

[sam]

Excellent job, Marcus! The scenes are good and strong with really nice contrasts. I especially like the flushing pheasants. Maybe you can comment on your scene technique...I believe you prefer a combination of lines, cuts, and dots as opposed to the all-dot Italian style.

Nice photos too.

 

[Glenn]

Marcus,
Your work is so good. I have always said that guys like me made guys like you look good, but your work is perfection on its own. It feels good to just study your technique. Thanks for sharing.

 

[SamW]

Marcus, thanks for sharing that project with us. Beautiful work that you do for sure! I thought I held the record at 50 years on my pickup truck project but once again have been bested. And my regards to the owner who has percevered all these years. I like dedication! Sam

 

[SamW]

Gosh, I haven't been called "junior" in 50 years either. S

 

[Peter E]

Beautiful work as always Marcus. I really like the flushing pheasants also.

Peter

 

[Ray Cover]

Marcus,

I am glad you posted both guns because it proves a point that i have been trying to make to folks for a while now.

Mr. Kell's gun is nice. The photos seem a little smaller than actual size on my screen and at the 72 dpi web resolution I can still tell that your cut is much cleaner than his.

The engravers from the first half of the 20th century had built reputations that live today. In that time info was VERY limitted and not shared. Furthermore, speed of cut was esential due to limmitted (or tight) purses of buyers, and the tools were not as user friendly as they are today.

It is very interesting to see a reputable engraver from that era and one from our era compared side by side on a very similar project. The quality level of today's work has skyrocketted compared to the earlier generation. The bar has been raised to such a level now days that I wonder if engravers from that generation would even beleive it was possible.

It is wild to see Kell done better than Kell himself did it.

I truely beleive that a 100-150 years from now it will the engravers that shine the brightest from our generation's artist. I look at what is going on in popular painting and sculpture and other art mediums over the past half century and frankly I am not impressed with the quality or progress they have made as a group. 100 years from now it will be the engravers and fine craftsmen like woodworkers and turners that the crowds will flock to the museums to see, not the painters and sculptors. Mark my words.

Ray

 

[Marcus Hunt]

Thanks guys for your kind remarks and Ray I think you've hit the nail on the head as regards the craftsmanship of today.

One thing that can never be taken away from Kell and his contemporaries is that they worked incredibly fast and without any of the aids to engraving that we have today. The gunmaker would have probably given Kell's workshop 2 - 3 weeks to turn the pair of guns around! (mine was more like 180-200 hours for one gun) They had a peg to hold the action, which was held in a hand held clamp, against. They used no magnification and had no electric lights. Access to media from which they took the birds was incredibly limited too. They had no real wildlife photographs or tv for inspiration and I dare say not many had ever left the city to see countryside. All in all and under the limitations they had I really don't see that they did a half bad job. Artistic? No, but I don't think they'd have ever thought of themselves as artists.

Yes, today we have many advantages over the engravers of the past and because of this it can't be denied that we are living at a time when engraving is reaching is zenith, and in my opinion, it is an 'art form'. But when I see some of the stuff that some so called 'artists' produce I don't know if I want to be classed along side them anyway!

 

[Barry Lee Hands]

The incredible depth of knowledge and experience within the Hunt family on the subject of engraving is phenomenonal. When you look from Marcus to Ken Hunt to Harry Kell, and his father Henry Kell C.1860-1929, we can see an unbroken line of professional english gun engraving with at least 125 years of uninterrupted work.
Those who attend the Ken Hunt Master class in Emporia next fall will not only have a priviledged chance to learn time honoured and original Hunt techniques, but to be as close as one can be to the" Lodestone" of british engraving without being born in London.

Harry Kell standing, henry seated, In the workshop 1930's

Harry Kell, 1940's

Ken Hunt in Kell shop, 1950's

Ken and Marcus Hunt

I believe most all these photos originated from the Ken Hunt archives, they came to me from David Trevallion

 

[sam]

Thanks for posting these, Barry. These photos are priceless.

 

[fegarex]

Awwwe.
Marcus, you were sooo cute!!!

Sorry, I just couldn't help myself.

 

[coincutter]

I don't think you were 70 Marcus
You look a lot yonger

 

[Mike Cirelli]

Marcus beautiful work, I also really like the flushing pheasants. They are very realistic. Cool story about the gun also. Great history of your family that Barry presented. I'd love to go too Barry's house and look at pictures. Barry maybe you would be kind enough to start a thread and post all the wonderful archival pictures you may have. There definitely fun to look at.
Ray you really went out on limb didn't you "100 years from now" I'll call you on that
Mike

 

[Ray Cover]

Mike,

The way modern medicine is going we may still be here.

 

[Martin Strolz]

Marcus,
Wonderful story and engraving. I look forward meeting with you and your father some day!

Martin

 

[Abigail]

Marcus,
I love those pictures. How Sweet!!! You look just like your Daddy! Tell him I said "hello"!
Abigail