David Huber: Partially Sandblasted Nepenthes Slipper (3722) Tobacco Pipe

David Huber is an American carver that takes inspiration from the Danish and Japanese pipe-making traditions, and as such, his work tends be quite organic, prioritizing sculpted lines and precise shaping. Huber began making pipes full-time in 2014 and received guidance in his early days from carvers like Jeff Gracik, Nanna Ivarsson, and Alex Florov.

This Nepenthes Slipper is a truly breathtaking design from Huber, representing his immaculate shaping and finishing work. Inspired by the Nepenthes plant of its namesake, this piece features a horizontally compressed bowl that rises from a firm rounded heel and stands at the fore of a boxy shank and a slender, demurely curved mouthpiece. From every angle, this piece offers a visual treat for the eyes, with firm ridgelines, supple curves, and asymmetrical lines appearing and colliding into one another depending on one's perspective. A touch of plateau along the shank end further heightens the shape's organic character, while a multicolored accent of HyperGlow Confetti along the stem base adds a touch of vibrant color to the pipe's otherwise reserved palette and will glow in the dark. A dual finish as striking and dynamic as the shape itself dresses the stummel, presenting the top of the stummel and the heel in a dark sandblast while the rest of the briar is adorned in an auburn stain that highlights fetching strands of flame grain.