Sandblasted Fish Tobacco Pipe

Wang Tieyuan, better known by his pseudonym Madao 3000, is a Chinese artisan with a penchant for subtly organic forms informed by his unique interpretations of the Danish and Japanese shaping schools. Inspired in equal measure by the works of master carvers that came before him and the natural world around him, Tieyuan's outlook on his craft is that of a persistent search for novel renditions of forms both familiar and fresh, telling us; "Nature is never repetitive, and I hope my pipes will never be either." This Fish is a plump and robust take on the shape that offers plenty of substance through its build to appreciate while smoking. Despite its hearty construction, this pipe compresses that heartiness into a compact form factor measuring just over four and a half inches long, ensuring that it remains portable while staying comfortable and reassuring in the hand.

Shape-wise, this pipe displays a great deal of balance between the shank and the bowl, the shank itself lifting out of an acute transition that yet leaves ample room to drape a digit if so desired, and curling up toward the stem. From the transition, the shank also begins to broaden, flaring out subtly and growing into an ovoid face that boasts a rounded bevel at its edges, with the face itself featuring a gentle dip at the center that adds an understated fluidity to the composition. At the right side of the face, a ridge manifests at the edge of the bevel and plunges through the shank, following its easy curve toward the bowl before lifting near the bowl's aft wall and rising across its rounded surface, coming to rest at the right fore of the rim. A tram brass band is inlaid into the shank face, bolstering the fitment of a push-style saddle stem with a demure downturn from its sharp expansion ring to the button. This stem is crafted from a length of striking, asphalt-toned vulcanite with small flecks of black interspersed between its warm, grey hues. The bowl stands atop a lifting heel and grows supple walls possessed of ample rounding, with a mid-set waistline acting as a natural indexing point for the hand. From the waist, the bowl begins an easy cinch to the rim, its walls angling forward just a touch to grant this composition a degree of liveliness and momentum, something that's tempered a bit by the shank's lift, the combination of angles and curves visually alluding to a fish flicking its tail out of the water. Dressed in an inky stain and a light-depth sandblast, the stummel here is draped in rippling growth rings that descend in dense stacks down the bowl and line the flanks of the shank, this finish highlighting the unique tones of the stem with aplomb.