Sandblasted Strawberry Wood Cutty (1525) Tobacco Pipe

Polish artisan Wojtek Pastuch takes inspiration from pipe-making schools the world over, though his key stylistic influences seem rooted in the Japanese and Danish traditions. Pastuch's pipes are most often understated, or tinged with his unique outlook on shaping in subtle ways, as his portfolio showcases a profound respect for and admiration of the timeless chart standards. Though not one of Pastuch's more sculptural pieces, this pipe is certainly not the traditional vision of the Cutty, and certainly stands out among more conventional iterations of the shape. Though not an extremely long piece in terms of total length, the near six inches of this pipe's footprint is primarily the work of the shank, which has been extended substantially, making an understated bit of taper as it reaches out to the stem. The shank meets the stem at a quickly flaring expansion that mirrors the stem's own expansion ring at the base, the negative space between the two allowing the start of the stem base to stylistically extend the shank's taper: the trimness of the two nearly matched. Up front, the bowl stands on a reserved looking heel, though one with just enough musculature to visually support its impressive construction. At more than two and a half inches tall, this bowl towers, especially in light of the shank's slimness, and boasts a sharp forward cant that makes it the veritable center of attention in this composition. Its structure is striking, primarily in that it features a mid-set rounding and constrained lower walls, granting it an almost Egg-like appearance that's more appropriately described as being akin to a pod. The ample curvature present across its height makes it incredibly comfortable in hand, and, despite the imposing stature of the bowl, the entire piece still manages to weigh less than an ounce. Rendered from strawberry wood and dressed in a dark mahogany sandblast, this piece is awash with bountiful ring grain, which cascades down the entirety of the bowl's height and ripples through the length of the shank: the nearly inky tone of the briar starkly contrasted by the cumberland stem's exceptionally bright red content.