Samegawara-bukura Fugu (2226) (2026) Tobacco Pipe

David Huber started making pipes in 2012 and turned his attention to the craft full-time in 2014. He credits Jeff Gracik and Hans "Former" Nielsen among the artisans who most helped in his development as a pipe maker. The Fugu is a Japanese-style take on the classic Blowfish, and this Fugu from David manages to be asymmetrical and quite beautiful in its shaping all at once. Drawn by sweeping ridgelines, rounded faces, and a flaring shank, it's a remarkable piece that emphasizes the "art" in the smoking pipe's role of "functional art."

The darkly stained sandblast emphasizes the growth rings of the bowl's left flank and the birdseye of its right flank, while a slender face runs all the way from the heel to the top of the shank to separate the flanks and hold the middle of the chamber. The tapered vulcanite stem is pushed into a smoothly finished upward sweep of the heel, bending ever-so-slightly on its way to the bit. Just a shade beyond Nosewarmer territory at 4.54 inches in length, David's precision and attention to detail come together with amazing results in this piece. "Samegawara" roughly translates into "shark-fin tile" in English, perhaps a reference to the smooth texture of the sandblast of this piece.