Conte Bent Bulldog (DDD) Tobacco Pipe

There are some very interesting stylistic elements at play in this rather unusual bent bulldog variation. The bowl reminds me vaguely of Kurt Balleby's work, while the shank is, to my eye at least, very Giancarlo Guidi. The subtle curvature of the diamond shank and its slight flattening are quintessential Pesaro school stylistic elements. That said, the way the bottom panels are carried forward into the bowl remind me a little of Rainer Barbi. I'm certainly not suggesting that this visual borrowing is intentional, or even that it is borrowing, but Rimensi's aesthetic voice is so versatile that it helps to reference a variety of pipe makers in trying to aesthetically assess his very sophisticated compositions. Back to the bowl, though, and its Balleby-esque shape. The double beading doesn't quite sit at the bowl's widest point, it actually sits just above it. This kind of playing with the bulldog shape is something that we've noted again and again from Balleby. It's not that Rimensi has done so in the same way Balleby would-- he really hasn't. It's more that they seem to be inhabiting the same mental space, playing with this particular shape in unconventional ways to yield interesting new compositions.

Aesthetic influences aside, it's a remarkable composition. All of the components, as disparate as they seem when discussed individually, work remarkably well together. The straight grain, while breaking up slightly on the right side of the bowl, is quite impressive and is nicely, but not overly, highlighted by the medium yellow-brown stain. The cumberland stem with its reddish striations complements the browns of the bowl rather nicely.

-- Sykes Wilford