Wandi Riyadi: Smooth Blowfish (6210) Tobacco Pipe

In 2011, while working as an IT engineer, Indonesian native Wandi Riyadi began smoking a pipe and became enamored with the hobby and all that it entailed. He soon tried his hand at making a pipe, and before long, he was obsessed. He eventually left his job and became a full-time pipe maker, leaving behind his previous career to chase his creative interests. One of Indonesia's few pipe makers, Ryadi has established himself as an artisan of note, and garnered an international audience of discerning collectors. His work takes inspiration from Japanese and Danish masters, like the Ivarssons, Bo Nordh, and Hiroyuki Tokutomi, and as such, his work is often highly organic, though he does craft more conservative pieces as well. This Blowfish showcases Riyadi's deft ability to craft unique forms in a distinctive and eye-catching fashion.

This Blowfish boasts several ridgelines that unevenly bifurcate the bowl and lend the shape its dynamic, lopsided appearance. Said ridgelines emphasize the bowl's wide, bulbous flanks, and provide a palpable rigidity to the otherwise curvaceous form. At the transition, the ridgelines culminate in two fin-like outcroppings of briar on either side of the transition. These outcroppings accentuate the transition and create a visual break between the forward-ebbing bowl at the fore and the upturned shank-and-stem arrangement at the aft. In addition to being perfect for on-the-go smoking, with a total length of less than five inches, this piece is also quite stylishly presented, dressed as it is in smoky smooth finish that highlights a handsome mixture of birdseye and cross grain.