Ceramic Beretta 92 | 9mm

I apprenticed under Charles Krafft for more than eight years. During that time, he occasionally allowed me to finish pieces he had begun, so working on his forms was already part of our relationship as artist and apprentice. I apprenticed under Charles Krafft for more than eight years, and during that time he occasionally let me finish pieces he had begun. After Charles passed away, I found this unfinished porcelain Beretta in his studio. The form was complete, but still unfired and unglazed. I wanted to preserve what he had made while finishing the piece in the spirit of our working relationship. I hand-painted the surface using overglaze techniques from my studies in Japan, with chrysanthemum and peony scrollwork, cobalt, and 24k gold details. For the final firing, I placed it in Charles’s original kiln, the same kiln that fired decades of his work. It is, quite literally, a work of two hands: Charles shaped the form; I completed the surface. CERAMIC BERETTA 92 12 5/8 × 10 5/8 × 3 1/2 in. Framed in a hand-blackened shadow box under acrylic. ONE OF ONE