David Huber: Smooth Fugu with Horn (6422) Tobacco Pipe

David Huber is an American carver who 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.

Huber is known for distinctive renditions of the Fugu, and this piece is a particularly unique design for Huber. The bowl is organically asymmetrical, with the left flank creating a soft curve, while a diagonally angled central panel encircles the bowl, pushed far to the right, rather than bifurcating the middle of the design. The right flank offers a balance to its opposite curve, creating an especially life-like aesthetic and comfortable feel in hand, contrasted by the firm points at the rim's fore and aft. Out back, a slim round shank joins an extended horn ferrule, which expands at its junction to a sleek vulcanite saddle stem. Dressed in a deep auburn finish, the stummel boasts excellent birdseye across the flanks, with tight cross grain perfectly oriented with the curves and panels of the bowl.