Phil Barnes

1952-2019

It is with much sadness we report that Phil Barnes died on 5 May 2019, after being diagnosed with cancer the previous year. We are leaving his gallery page on the website in memory of our universally liked and hugely respected master engraver, Hand Engravers Association Trustee and friend.

Phil’s drive and determination and willingness to share his skills led to his book, “Engraving and Enamelling, The Art of Champleve” to be published in early 2019. Copies can be ordered from Crowood Press.

Enameller and engraver Multi award-winning enameller who designed and created individual pieces in silver and gold, specialising in champlevé enamelling. Winner of the Jacques Cartier Craftsman of the Year Award; awarded Freedom of the Goldsmiths’ Company and of the City of London in 1978. Winner of numerous awards from the Goldsmiths’ Arts Council for enamelling, engraving and designer finished pieces. Apprenticed to his father, Charles Frank Barnes, in 1967, Phil set up his own workshop in Clapham, London in 1983 as a freelance enameller to the trade. He has since been Master to three apprentices, given numerous master classes both in the UK and abroad and lectured on enamelling at the Sir John Cass School of Art and Design, the Royal College of Art, UCE Birmingham and The Goldsmiths’ Centre. He recently worked with the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust (QEST) to mentor aspiring enamellers. Over the years Phil has worked with many of the country’s leading goldsmiths, silversmiths and jewellers including Asprey, Garrard, Cartier, De Vroomen Designs, Elizabeth Gage Ltd and Theo Fennell, with many pieces destined for various heads of state including the British Royal family, the Sultan of Brunei and the Maharana of Udaipur. His work is part of the permanent collection at the Musée de l’Horlogerie et de l’Émaillerie, Geneva.