Silver Gray: Smooth Olivewood Hawk Dog Tobacco Pipe

The first olivewood pipe from Silver Gray, this Hawk Dog is a beautiful addition to this year's American Exposition. Shape wise, it's one of Silver's signature designs, combining elements of the Hawkbill and Bulldog forms. A diamond shank curves strikingly into the bowl's heel, virtually eliminating the transition and creating the Hawkbill's iconic profile. The bowl is a gentle, conservative take on the Bulldog, with a high-set ridgeline just above the shank's union to the bowl. An easy taper toward the rounded heel softens the silhouette while the drastic taper above the ridgeline accentuates the rim and makes for a well insulated chamber.

Silver Gray often incorporates cumberland into her pieces, but the material is all the more appropriate paired here with the olivewood. The inky swirls within the drab cumberland mirror the dark lines of the olivewood's grain. Such a feature balances the piece's visual aesthetic, made even stronger by the complementing colors of olive green and creamy butter. It's a unique and innovative piece that maintains many of Silver Gray's conventions while also pushing the boundaries of what we're used to seeing from her. Beautiful work.