Diana the Huntress Knife

[Brian Hochstrat]

Here is the latest knife I just completed. Diana the huntress is the theme. I am pretty happy with the final outcome. I have really been working at simply becoming a better artist. It has helped considerably.

Also you will notice that the switch has been inlayed, the first for me, but thanks to Ray giving me a quick tutorial on how to handle it, it was no problem. They really are not as complex as you would imagine(if you know what you are doing).

If my info is correct this is one of a series of knives that depict greek themes I had seen the Athena knife Ray had done prior to me starting this job(it was an awesome piece) so I new the expectations where pretty high, Ray is a mighty tough act to follow. So I planned and drew and redrew and worked harder on this one piece than anything I had done prior, I did my very best, and put in right at 160 hrs (just counting engraving time, not design time) to get it where I had to stop before my improvements started un-improving it, if that makes sense. It really was not the biggest moneymaker I have ever done, I probably could have made the same flipping burgers but I wanted the knife to be the best I could due, and even with all that my second side is better than my first. I read somewhere Torcoli used to do the same early in his career, give many more hours than he was paid for, it worked pretty well for him.

I still have some flaws and things I will address on the next one, but as I said I am actually satisfied with this one. Anyway, as always critique is welcome. Thanks- Brian

PS. Can you see the hidden deer on the side with the dog?

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[Marrinan]

Brian,

simply spectacular-Diana is truly one beautiful lady- the young buck is so alive-you can see the gentalness in his eyes-beautiful work
Fred

 

[Sam]

Brian, your hard work is paying off well. Very impressive engraving, my friend. Bravo! / Sam

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Well Brian, that is simply fantastic!!!

Cheers
Andrew

 

[jlseymour]

Great work Brian, your work is fantastic...
Look foward to see more of your work, Thanks...
Jerry

 

[Mike Cirelli]

Very nice Brian. I do see the a silhouette of a deer. There was an artist I can't remember his name but he used to incorporate his daughters initials in every drawing he did. Keep up the good work.

 

[Ray Cover]

You handled that quite well brian,

Glad the switch worked out for you and glad I could help.

Keep cutting your work just keeps getting better and better.

Ray

 

[michaelp]

Brian, truely stunning work

 

[Ranchman]

Beautiful !
You really did an excellent job. I keep looking at her hair in the second picture. It's perfect.

 

[sdcoxx]

Brian,
Your engraving is Wonderful....
Are Art knives easier to sell compared to the highend Colt you engraved, for example?
Where and how will you offer it for sale?
Thanks for sharing your superior grade artwork.
Stephen

 

[threefingerdave]

Brian,
that knife is a true piece of art
it is a real inspiration to a new engraver to see you work
Thanks for showing
Dave

 

[D.DOUGLAS]

Brian, Always a pleasure to see your work. Thanks for showing it.

 

[Christiaan]

Brian, that is just amazing. Absolutely amazing!!! No money will ever be enough to really pay for it. Congrats on pulling this one off.

 

[Gargoyle]

Very nice Brian. I do see the a silhouette of a deer. There was an artist I can't remember his name but he used to incorporate his daughters initials in every drawing he did. Keep up the good work.

That was Al Hirschfeld, every drawing had a number in the corner, that was the number of NINA's hidden in the drawing. The Air Force even used his drawings for to train bomber pilots with the soldiers trying to spot the NINAs much as they would spot their targets.
http://anecdotage.com/index.php?aid=3304

 

[pilkguns]

Brian, you excel more in this art with every attempt.

 

[ron p. nott]

Brian ... THAT IS JUST FANTASTIC , I have been working on a Diana theme knife for years I have several samples that I have engraved laying on the bench in different stages , Diana is my favorite goddess . thanks for posting the terrific work .. ron p.

 

[Roger Bleile]

Brian,

Absolutely beautiful design and execution. Your knife should be on the cover of Blade magazine.

Roger

 

[deedubbya]

Brian;
Great job!
I can burn up hours being memorized by you work, every time seeing something I missed the first time.
Congratulations.
Dave

 

[Brian Hochstrat]

Brian,
Your engraving is Wonderful....
Are Art knives easier to sell compared to the highend Colt you engraved, for example?
Where and how will you offer it for sale?
Thanks for sharing your superior grade artwork.
Stephen

This knife was a commissioned piece, but to answer the question, No. I have done 2 spec knives in my career, the first was medocre at best, I sold it on ebay unsigned and cheap, but I learned a lot. The second, was on a Kious and it turned out much better, I still own it.

It will sell eventually, what I am finding to be reality, is that when you are trying to get into the "art" engraving, it is just that, art. People collect your work and most of the time they want a return on there investment down the line. So if you are to get the money for your time invested, you have to be collectable, i.e. have a recognizable name and to get that you have to get noticed. I once asked one of my mentors, "How do you get noticed?" Do kick butt work, he replied.

After going to some shows, with pieces I felt were pretty good, I began to think he was mistaken, I have this stuff, but nothing is selling, the collectors are not noticing me no matter what I put in front of them. On top of it I am constantly being asked if I am going to "stick with it" Now thats a dumb question I would always think. Well, after some reevaluation, I have come to this conclusion, my old teacher was right after all, they did in fact take notice, but, what I did not understand was that they want to see that I will continue engraving so when they do buy something it will grow in value down the line. If this all happens, and I have not died of hunger, I then can sell my Kious, and not loose money.

Spec jobs are a must, you have to show what you can do and practice plates won't cut it. But keep in mind you may own the piece for quite a while. This is how I have experienced things, others may have a differing view, if so it would be good to hear it.

Thanks for the good reviews, hopefully knives will keep arriving in the mail so I can post more stuff to look over. Brian

 

[jlseymour]

Brian, Your Wisdom is much older than your years...
Keep going you will...
Jerry