Workshop

What happens when you try to force the fluid, organic soul of 18th-century French Baroque artwork onto the flat geometry of a modern lever-action rifle? You get a messy, chaotic, but ultimately rewarding digital wrestling match. Read the full step-by-step breakdown of how I used generative AI, Adobe Illustrator, and precise Cerakote laser settings to bring the hunting motifs of master designer De la Collombe to life on a modern Rossi receiver.

By the 17th century, gun engraving designs were no longer being adapted from other trades, they were starting to be designed specifically for the firearm. In Part 3, we follow how French pattern books shaped the style of gun engraving across Europe, and how those designs began to show up from one workshop to the next.

Gun engraving didn’t start on guns. In Part 2, we follow how Renaissance pattern books influenced early firearm engraving, as scrollwork and classical designs made their way from paper onto steel.

Part 1 of a 5 part series exploring the history and evolution of engraving scrollwork on firearms. In this part we start in 16th Century Europe, and visualize the transition from engraving armor to engraving matchlock and flintlock pistols.