Micah Redmond: Partially Sandblasted Boxwood Tomato with Bakelite Tobacco Pipe

Micah Redmond has quite a knack for chubby, comfortingly substantial pieces like this. They often sport deceptive proportions, the likes of which don't give much away in terms of scale when simply glancing at an image of the pipe. That said, the carver's lent this one a sense of hearty corpulence, and joining the likes of Kei-ichi Gotoh and Wolfgang Becker, Micah's made use of pale honey-blonde boxwood for the entirety of the pipe itself, chosen as his entry in our 2018 American Exposition. The bowl's rounded flanks showcase the subtle, distinctive waves of grain to great effect, while out back, Micah opted to treat it with a dark, craggy sandblast, paired to a stem of lemony yellow bakelite. It's the first instance we've seen from Micah of sandblasted boxwood, and judging by the handsome, unified fellow seen here, we surely hope it isn't the last.