Yuwei: Smooth Bo's Pot with Horn Tobacco Pipe

Taiwanese artisan Yuwei Huang takes inspiration from Danish and Japanese pipe making and fashions highly stylized and rather organic shapes. Here, Huang pays homage to Danish design and Bo Nordh's signature bent Pot shape, which was originally inspired by a design Sixten Ivarsson made. The bowl of this piece resembles an Hourglass, what with its drooping heel, cinched waistline, and inflated rim. Though not particularly large, the bowl is rather wide, especially along its base, where the briar expands outward along the flanks. The rim, while tauter than the heel, shares a similar width, and both rim and heel are possessed of a subdued but noticeable curvature.

The heel juts slightly outward at the fore of the composition, which in turns gives the rim a rearward slope in comparison. The slender shank extends high, away from the base of the bowl, before giving way to a horn mount that flares into a slender, demurely curved saddle stem. The creamy hues of the horn add a dose of vibrancy to the composition that really captures the eye, and its swift expansion immediately draws attention to the gentle lilt of the mouthpiece. The previously mentioned waistline is perfectly situated on the bowl for wrapping-fingers to grip, and the mouthpiece's elegant arc offers a comfortable smoking posture. A glossy, oak-hued smooth finish dresses the stummmel and highlights an impressive array of birdseye and cross grain about the bowl, further elevating this already masterful piece.