Yuwei: Sandblasted Cup and Ball with Mammoth Tobacco Pipe

The Cup and Ball is attributed to Danish pipe-making legend Lars Ivarsson, with many artisans since offering their own interpretations. We saw one such piece from Yuwei Huang in 2019, making this example a most welcome addition. The bulbous, mid-waisted bowl displays a forward-ebbing voluptuousness, its plump, supple curves fitting comfortably in hand and embodying the shaping cues of Danish design. An especially organic rendering, it's further characterized by a defining, pronounced ridgeline which wraps and demarcates the transition, forming a point at the heel. The bowl is poised at the end of an upward curling shank, flaring at the end in a colorful mammoth accent, the pink tones lightening the composition. A slender vulcanite stem follows, its stylish expansion disc mirroring the trajectory of the accent.

The Taiwanese artisan has further delineated this pipe by a dual-toned sandblast. The bowl is dressed in a dark mahogany hue, with the inner, beveled rim smoothly stained for contrast; the shank, however, is wearing an auburn color. The grain is stunning here, with both rippling growth rings and vertical grain displayed across the bowl's flanks.