Abe Herbaugh: Smooth Chestnut with Horn Tobacco Pipe

One of the United States' most accomplished artisan carvers, Abe Herbaugh's portfolio primarily comprises refined, organic works crafted in the Danish style, all infused with his sophisticated signature style. The Chestnut is one of Herbaugh's signature shapes, an imagining of his similarly signature take on the Tomato shape that eschews much of that form's more overtly thick aspects in favor of a refined and gracile silhouette that reflects his Danish leanings perfectly. The bowl stands at the fore and takes on the majority of the visual weight, mainly by virtue of its heartiness compared to the shank and stem combination, and it rests on a pronounced heel. This heel is remarkably soft, though it punctuates the bowl's presence like a spur, further bolstering its visual weight while reinforcing the softness of the bowl's walls as they rise to a high-set waistline. This high waist separates the shape from most other Tomatos, and it works with the stummel's reserved construction to lend this pipe an Apple-like look, though this is tempered by the bowl's particular build. The walls make a subdued forward urge as they expand, meeting the high waist and forming an asymmetrical rim that reinforces the subdued asymmetry present throughout the bowl: the right walls pushing out further than the left while maintaining a comfortable presence in hand. The transition is wide, with plenty of room to drape a digit, and it gives way to a short, tapering shank met by a bulbous, flaring fitment of horn that forms a domed face and is inlaid with a ring of brass, creating a sturdy push-style mount for the stem. Said stem is a sleek and stylized saddle of black vulcanite, complete with a base that's been shaped to mirror the horn accent, creating an organic, stepped look that adds an impressive bit of additional detail to the composition. This piece's organicism ties it together, unifying all three components and disparate materials under a single vision that displays Herbaugh's sophisticated shaping acumen and keen eye for design clearly. Dressed in a rich contrast stain, the stummel reveals a wrapping pattern of flame surrounding the bowl, while dense fields of birdseye populate both the rim and underside.