Alex Florov: Smooth Blowfish Tobacco Pipe

I wouldn't go so far as to call this Florov Blowfish architectural, or even close as a whole, but it is a case where Alex has slipped some elements of that nature into the design; the neat part is indeed the way they don't stand out.

Take the left flank of the bowl; it is easily the most organic area of this shape, with its smooth, rounded face framed by a quick, smooth line that flows not only around it, but also alternately towards and away from the center of the pipe. This looks right at home — but so too does the right side of the shank, the most architectural feature, where the shank's long, continuous curve has been dressed in a trio of well-defined panels.

The trick I suppose is context. The left side of the shank's underside is followed by a smooth channel, playing as a manner of more-organic complement to the flat planes that follow the right side. This helps give the two halves of the shank a bit of a common element, so the right doesn't stand out as it would were, say, the entire left of the shank rounded. Similarly, the right side of the bowl, though sporting a soft curve and smooth, waving line as a frame, is quite muted compared compared to the larger, more dramatic display of the bowl's left. Since the right side of the bowl shares visual space with the right side of the shank (obviously), this more muted organicism keeps the two from contrasting too strongly. Move over to the rear face of the stem's base, and you find the organic and architectural actually combined; the cross-section is asymmetrical but Alex at the same time defined the taper into the rest of the stem through panels.

- Eric N. Squires