Tsuge Ikebana: Sandblasted Reverse Calabash Bent Dublin Sitter (Ohi) (G) (164) (2019) Tobacco Pipe

Meaning "living flowers" and named in reference to Japan's lauded flower-arrangement art form, Tsuge's Ikebana workshop comprises three artisans who individually carve pipes under the Ikebana name. A similar, organic aesthetic often unites the workshop's pipes, regularly showcasing distinctively Japanese interpretations of Danish shapes, yet each carver retains their own personal design style, with this particular piece fashioned by Yoshirou Ohi.

Despite its muscular aesthetic and the shank's especially robust shaping, this bent Dublin sits sturdily upright upon its flattened heel. The bowl is an organic interpretation of the classic Dublin, flaring into a plateau crown along the rim, while the shank mirrors the bowl's flare and rivals its visual weight. Such hearty shaping of the shank allows for reverse Calabash engineering, housing a separate chamber to allow smoke to cool and moisture to dissipate before traveling through the stem. An arresting shape, its attractive aesthetic increases with a remarkable sandblast, revealing the briar's natural growth rings all across the bowl.