Tsuge Ikebana: Sandblasted Acorn (Fukuda) (G) (056) (2021) Tobacco Pipe

The Tsuge Ikebana workshop consists of three artisans — Kazuhiro Fukuda, Yoshirou Ohi, and Asami Kikuchi — who individually craft pipes under the Ikebana name. Kazuhiro Fukuda is the workshop's supervisor and was one of the initial carvers that Tsuge sent to Denmark to study under Sixten Ivarsson. With over forty years of pipe making experience, Fukuda is a venerated carver, and his mastery of the craft is on full display with this plump, organic Acorn.

Fukuda has crafted a number of Acorns in the past, and he always imbues the shape with a subtle curvature that softens its appearance. That remains true for this rendition, with the heavy-set bowl possessing a suppleness to its shaping. The concave nature of the flared rim and the subtly drooping heel give the bowl a heart-shaped appearance when viewed in profile, and the aforementioned curvature can be easily observed. The hearty bowl is paired to a lifted oval shank and a gently bent saddle stem of jet-black vulcanite. The horizontal compression of the shank mirrors the vertical compression along the flanks of the bowl, and just as the bowl flares to the the rim, the shank flares to its face, creating a sense of visual harmony within the composition. A dark, craggy sandblast dresses the stummel and unveils rippling waves of growth rings on either flank of the bowl, providing plenty of visual intrigue as well as a stimulating in-hand presence. The shadowy complexion of the briar matches nicely with the dark coloration of the stem for a unified palette.