Tsuge Ikebana: Smooth Tomato (Fukuda) (Q) (080) (2018) 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 decades of pipe making experience, Fukuda is a venerated carver, and his mastery of the craft is on full display with this Tomato.

A charming, elegant composition, this piece features a broad, supple bowl that's posed at the fore of a flared oval shank and a demurely curved saddle stem. The bowl's wide stance and elegant contours conform naturally to the hand, while the upturned shank-and-stem arrangement promotes a comfortable smoking posture and lends a touch of gesture to the shape's profile. A firm ridgeline traverses one side of the shank and provides a touch of structure to the otherwise soft form, as well as a bit of texture. Dressed in vibrant smooth finish, the stummel boasts gorgeous birdseye and flame grain across the bowl and shank alike.