Lasse Skovgaard: Smooth Freehand Tobacco Pipe

The son of renowned artisan Benni Jørgensen, Skovgaard has pipe making in his blood, starting with W.Ø. Larsen at 16 where he made tampers and carved pipes in his spare time to practice the art. Eventually, he began to meet the exacting standards of both Larsen and his father, moving on to make pipes for the Danish workshop at 18 and rising swiftly to begin crafting their coveted Straight Grain pieces at 19 years old. After being urged by family friend Teddy Knudsen, Skovgaard began carving his own pipes, taking a small selection to the Chicago Pipe Show and selling out two years in a row, starting his career as an artisan carver.

This Freehand piece is a lovely display of Skovgaard's work, presenting with a sweeping outline that immediately draws the eye to the bowl. The stummel here is possessed of a wonderfully curvaceous build that creates an undercurve rich with momentum, not only further emphasizing the pull of the bowl's presence, but imbuing the composition with a sense of vitality and dynamism. The bowl here is a nicely rounded, Acorn-like structure that sits atop a lifted heel and rises to a high-set waistline with ample curvature about its walls to ensure a comfortable feel in hand. A wide transition leads to the sinuously lifted shank, arcing upward and flaring to meet a demurely curved saddle stem of jet-black vulcanite that's fitted with a crisply lined expansion ring. The Freehand elements of this pipe are mainly seen on the underside, and come in the form of a single ridgeline and a remarkable hollow carving, with the flow of the ridge starting at the apex of the shank's flare. This point of the shank is marked with its own ridge, though as it reaches beneath the ridge splits off and follows the outline of the shank, rising with the bowl and wrapping around the aft of the rim before descending at the other side and following the same path back. All of the forward-facing briar at the bowl, and that of the underside's briar, are hollow carved near the ridge, allowing for a great deal of material to push out, creating a feel in hand that's both firm and soft at once. Dressed in a warm auburn stain, the stummel of this pipe is rich with flame grain at the flanks, while the top and bottom are both awash with birdseye.