Tsuge Ikebana: Smooth Dublin with Bamboo (Kikuchi) (H) (072) (2023) Tobacco Pipe

The three artisans that work out of the small Ikebana workshop in Japan are incredibly talented individuals, each given the freedom to craft shapes that are utterly their own and in styles that reflect their own sensibilities. Of the three, Asami Kikuchi is the youngest, though she honed her artistic talent for many years before joining the team and, once there, was mentored for a full year by the head of the workshop Kazuhiro Fukuda, who was taught by Sixten Ivarsson and boasts over 40 years of experience. This Dublin from Kikuchi is a lovely piece that is rich with fluid curves and implied momentum, all while maintaining a Danish sensibility.

This pipe is a testament to understatement, with an extremely subtle degree of curvature to its stem that lends this piece some of the flowing lines that the bent iteration of the shape would, all while keeping the smoking posture essentially straight. The bare downturn of the stem possesses a sleek saddle of black vulcanite which ebbs out from a flared base, a shaping element that mirrors the rhythm of a trio of bamboo knuckles. These knuckles are fitted to a trim, tapering shank and offer an organic style while balancing the presence of the bowl with their naturalistic look. Both the shank and stem continue divots present in the bamboo's surfaces, unifying these disparate elements and speaking to Kikuchi's talents as a carver. The bowl rests on a sweeping heel and boasts thick walls that flare dramatically out toward its rim, their broadest point marked by a softly wavering ridge which additionally denotes the rim's softly inflated presence. Dressed in a warm, rich stain, the stummel here showcases handsome grain, especially at the bowl, where dense flame grain wraps its circumference and birdseye bespeckles its rim.