Alex Florov has spoken to us before about influences and other master-pipemakers whose work he admires, but there's another pipemaker relevant to discussions of Alex Florov pipes. Specifically, an artisan who is relevant because the two share some history as artisans. Both came into pipemaking from a background as professional model-makers, both have expressed a love for the floral, and in particular for the beauty of the Art Nouveau movement, and both went on to express this more often than not in very complex pipe shapes. Yet each went on to produce very different work as a whole — a very different design language.

Alex Florov took things in his own direction, and Maigurs Knets took things in his. Where Maigurs's pipe designs showed an overtly Art Nouveau style, Alex's work is more eclectic, or perhaps a better way to put it would be that it involves more synthesis. In their most complex pipe designs, you can look at the Knets in its lush profile and look at features of Art Nouveau architecture (a wrought iron railing, a door frame dressed in floral relief), and see an obvious relationship. With Florov, however, floral lines and surfaces are often found to be both simpler in outline, and yet in form and direction falling, curving, wrapping around in a fully three-dimensional play — a "balanced asymmetry" in form, or gesture, or both together, as if Alex were stripping down Art Nouveau floral-ness by tweaking it towards a Danish smoothness, but then turning it in three dimensions according to the principles Hiroyuki Tokutomi pioneered in Japanese pipemaking.

At least, that works as a way to appreciate some of Alex Florov's most complex shapes, like the Tadpole. In others he'll throw you a loop with harder edges, sudden stops, and/or a tenser twist that speaks of an idea or a mood more dramatic and aggressive, or at least, tempestuous. Take the Falling Leaf, for example, or the flame-like gestures that play a part surrounding the soft, smooth center implied in the Tear of Aphrodite.

So how do Florov designs begin? Quite often, like this:

That is a napkin, and it has been framed on our walls through three different Smokingpipes offices. That is to say, it was on display when there were about a dozen of us working on the second and third floors above Low Country Pipe & Cigar, then on display when there were a couple dozen of us in a second, larger office, and it is still on display now that there are several dozen of us all in an even larger office. It is an artifact of Alex Florov's passion. Ideas for pipe designs may strike him anywhere, and when they do the first thing he looks for is something to start sketching them down on before the muse gets a chance to slip away, and he risks losing it to the needs of focusing on matters more mundane — like finishing a meal.

Recently we sat down and got on the phone with Alex to get his own latest thoughts on pipes, on pipemakers, and of course, on pipemaking.

SPC: "Both you and Maigurs came from backgrounds as professional model makers. Yet along with different design languages, you also each adopted some different shaping techniques. Maigurs was known to use specifically-shaped carbide burrs, while you are known for using finely-honed chisels, for example. You use an industrial-grade milling machine to attain ten-thousandth-of-an-inch precision in the engineering aspects of a pipe, but you also turn to hand-tools. What dictates which tools you will use and when?"

Alex: "It's difficult to answer one way. Jeff Folloder gave this interesting lecture about seven years ago. He visited a dozen great Dane pipe shops to see how they make pipes, and then he gave us a lecture about it, and he told that there is no one way to make a pipe. There is always something different. Because I do a wide variety of shapes, I always use different techniques. More classical shapes are a little bit easier to do because the technique is the same. They don't require any special attention in that area; I can just go forward and do them. The freehands, especially if it's a new shape, there's always something new. On most of my freehand pipes lately, I use everything in my arsenal. I use sanding sticks like Maigurs does, I use hand chisels, sometimes I sharpen an X-acto knife to a really small point just to reach small areas, so it's whatever goes, goes. The idea is to reach the goal by any means."

SPC: "You've spoken to us before about the demanding nature of inspiration; the need to preserve a shape-idea whenever it might strike you by sketching it out on whatever is available, and how sometimes you'll just need to put down one work-in-progress because another pipe idea comes to mind, and you need to do something with it while the idea is fresh on your mind. You're also known as a perfectionist, however, which itself demands a great deal in terms of time invested. How do you balance the two?"

Alex: "That's a tough one. I can add a little bit more to the balance itself. Sometimes I have to stop myself, after a long time it's not worth the time I spend on it. That's one thing that will add to it... that's just how it is, so that's one thing.

Another thing, you mentioned Maigurs. We do have a similar background, but I'll say, Maigurs, well I always say he's way more talented than I am when it comes to wood carving, and he finished the art academy and he majored in wood carving, wood sculpturing, so he got lucky this way."

SPC: "Go on."

Alex: "When it comes to me, I was interested in wood carving, and I was interested in antique furniture. Through some family connections, I was introduced to the person who was working as a restorer in a museum of furniture and they took me as the apprentice, and I worked there basically as an apprentice in learning a lot of stuff, working these absolutely unique pieces, and this was my background and introduction to wood carving. After that, it was basically my own will pushing me to do more, to try to learn more techniques, to try to learn different tools and approaches. After I came to the United States, I started to work as a cabinet maker, which is --way off-- from wood carving. It is simple kitchen cabinets, sometimes some bedroom sets and stuff, so it's like there is no carving at all. It's a table saw, formica, and a lot of glue.

And in another stroke of luck I had, I met a person here who worked for Revell-Monogram, pretty much a famous plastic model company. He introduced me to his friend who's an independent contractor for Revell-Monogram making the master models, you know, the model before the models for sale are produced. He took me as a model maker, and I started to carve wood again, making master models for Revell-Monogram and some other American plastic model companies. So I came back to the wood carving this way, and I met Maigurs there. That's actually how I met Maigurs, and I've known him for I think over 17 years now because after that place of work went out of business, I found another one, I told Maigurs, and he joined me there. After that place went out of business, I found another one. A year later, Maigurs asked me if I knew anywhere he can go, and I introduced him to my current boss, and he's actually working there now. We're still working at the same place in different offices. He's actually going to come back to pipe making, at least a little bit."

SPC: "Maigurs?"

Alex: "He is artistic. He is more talented as an artist's artist, like a big-shot artist. Pipes alone, for him, were a little bit too limited. He cannot limit himself just on the pipes, so his idea is to continue to make a few pipes a year, but at the same time working on the larger wood art, sculpture you know, more complicated larger pieces. I don't know how he's going to manage all of it, to be honest. I just wish him all the luck. Maigurs, I know that he's a real good guy..."

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