in 2008, he obtained a grant in research and creation from the Conseil des arts et lettres du Québec in order to study the origin of the jewellery within the First Nations of North America and to create a collection melding traditional craftsmanship in jewelry with contemporary aesthetics and techniques. In 2009, to deepen his knowledge of the history of engagement rings, Pino went to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, which contains the largest collection of Ancient Egyptian jewelry in the world. Seeing the Pharaohs’ jewelry and meeting with well-known specialists allowed him to better understand the ancestral techniques and to learn more about the symbolic importance and origin of the engagement ring. This project of research and creation was made possible thanks to the Conseil des arts et lettres du Québec.