Sandblast Horn Tobacco Pipe

Jess Chonowitsch's horn shapes have a well deserved following. Superficially simple, their sophistication lies in the subtlety of line and form that makes all of Jess' pipes so special. This piece is a superb example of that. The line that runs from the bottom of the saddle in the stem to the rim at the front of the bowl is extraordinary-- simple, elegant, perfect. The visual interplay between that line and the corresponding line that defines the top of the shank and the back of the bowl is likewise impressive. The fewer the lines that define a shape, the more important it becomes that those lines are executed perfectly; by reducing the shape to two or three simple, elegant lines, the overall structure of the pipe becomes apparent. However, it does not end with those two lines. The third defining line, that which separates the sandblasted areas of the bowl from the smooth rim, is particularly interesting. A subtle weave in this line on the right side of the bowl is both charming and surprising: Jess' decision here, to bend this line that one would expect to be straight, is fascinating. That line mimicks the line that defines the underside of the shank on the right side, yet remains straight on the left. Coming from Jess, this seems to demonstrate a playfulness that we rarely see from him-- indeed, curving that line on both sides, or not at all, would have been more expected. Still, this is all quite subtle; Jess, in his quest for perfection, gives himself a fairly narrow range in which his playfulness can by exhibited-- in a more macro sense, he's extraordinarily creative, yet for his own work, his definitions of 'rightness' are extremely stringent, which is why we regularly see two things from Jess: a perfection that is rarely matched by other pipe makers and a seriousness to his work that, more often than not, subsumes his sense of play. So, perhaps with this pipe, we get to see a little of both aspects of Jess' pipe making character as he melds these two ideas, introduces some subtle asymmetry and, in the process, creates a pipe that is both extraordinary in its 'rightness' and, at the same time, quite charming. It is this kind of subtletly of form and design that make this pipe in particular, and Jess' work in general, so very special.
-- Sykes Wilford