Making the medal has been challenging and enjoyable (because I enjoy challenges...). It was good to have to figure out how to make it, what worked and what didn't. We found that the medal started to change itself, because of what the materials would allow and the problems that changing the drawings into a 3D object incurred. For example, we had no idea what the cast palm would be like until we tried it, and it turned out deeper than we anticipated, making the medal thicker than we had planned. Casting the palm was also problematic because it necessitated pouring hot wax on skin. This was fine at first, but seemed more painful each time we decided to reform the shape, and meant that our attempts to get it right were limited to what we (mainly Ed) could physically endure.
Overall, I am pleased with the final wax version of the medal and am really, very excited to see it in bronze. The palm looked better and much more interesting than I had imagined. The very fine lines of the skin (which I hope will translate in metal) reminded me of contour lines or cracks in the Earth, adding another level of significance to the medal's meaning.
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