Ray Kurusu: Smooth Blowfish Tobacco Pipe

This is a very different style of Blowfish from Ray Kurusu; where earlier examples have emphasized the shape's muscularity through a mix of stout proportions and dramatic flares, here he's gone for something much more compact and tight-knit. In essence, this is a Nautilus Blowfish — similar to Fugu-style Japanese renditions of the shape in its abbreviated, condensed length, yet quite elaborate and complex of linework in its spiraling series of bevels and ridges all coming to a head at the kiss of plateau along the left flank. What's really interesting is how clearly he's kept both of its derivative shapes in full focus; the Tokutomi-esque asymmetrical orientation of the central plane, as well as the convex planes of the flanks are classic Japanese Blowfish cues, yet he's really underlined the Nautilus' playful gesture through those aforementioned spiraling lines — together producing something both novel and impressive to boot. Of course, he's sacrificed nothing in way of grain presentation to realize such a form, with each plane highlighting a different facet of the block's grain pattern in bold, fiery contrast. Excellent work from Ray here.

- Andrew Wike