Adam Davidson: Partially Sandblasted Amoeba with Bamboo Tobacco Pipe

Large or small, Adam Davidson never shies away from a challenge. In the case of the Amoeba, the challenge was both large and small, as in small of form but large in terms of relative difficulty. A number of years back, Adam encountered an especially shallow block of briar, the distance from its center to plateau only allowing for an acutely compressed piece. So Adam decided to experiment with the block, following the grain's natural pattern and allowing the playful undulation of the briar's plateau to initiate a wavy aesthetic about the rim. Here he opted for a vibrant stain to dress the sinuous surface area, with a gentle kiss of plateau to complement the stunning birdseye-adorned surface, and dramatically stacked, blasted rings to bolster the gradually flared form. Pairing the idiosyncratic shape with a stretch of his special, dark bamboo, the result is an arrow-straight, minimalist display of organic dynamism. No two of these are alike; this is only the second I've seen from the carver, but each piece has been both playful and stunning.