Yeti: Partially Sandblasted Deco Sitter (325) Tobacco Pipe

Though Micah Cryder of Yeti pipes decided to forego the route of novel stem color for his entry in our 2017 American Exposition, the concept he devised is acutely novel nonetheless. And in respect to the very purpose of an accent stem being to work in tandem with the composition at large, Micah simply knocked it out of the park here, fashioning a svelte, yet organic Acorn-esque sitter shape with no shortage of liveliness. Imbued with an asymmetrical shift of geometry about the bowl, a crisp contrast to the faceted shank and Deco-style stem's stepped, architectural disposition, the piece as a whole is also splendidly balanced, with the visual weight of the stem base operating in contrast to that of the lively, plateaued rim. It's a piece that clearly took some patience and planning to properly execute, and Micah even purchased special files specifically for the task. Even more clearly, as you can see, his work certainly paid off.

- Daniel Bumgardner