Tsuge Ikebana: Sandblasted 'Kiseru' with Bamboo (Kikuchi) (J) (048) (2024) Tobacco Pipe

Since 2015, Smokingpipes has held the American Pipe Making Exposition, a celebration of America's finest artisans who gather together a bespoke selection of their best work, all revolving around a central theme. For 2024, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Expo, Smokingpipes has expanded participation to include entrants from around the world in what will henceforth be known as the Global Pipe Making Exposition. Fittingly, 2024's theme is bamboo, the same as the first Expo, and it's an opportunity for carvers worldwide to show off their most inventive, innovative compositions.

Carved by Asami Kikuchi, this "Kiseru" from Tsuge's Ikebana workshop is a delightfully evocative pipe, its reminiscence to the traditional Japanese shape not completely apparent at first glance. Upon further examination, however, this pipe reveals bespoke detail throughout its build that reinterprets the timeless Kiseru form as an organic Acorn. The most different aspect of this particular pipe compared to more traditional Kiserus is at the area of the Gankubi, comprising the bowl and shank of this piece, the former remarkably large for a Kiseru and standing atop a pronounced, pointed heel. Said bowl grows thick, plump walls that flare out in a curvaceous arc, forming a high-set waist that makes for a comfortable feel in hand and reaching a smartly chamfered rim. The bowl cants forward out of a wide transition that pairs it to an extremely short, tapering shank before being extended by a lengthy stretch of bamboo.

This bamboo is effectively representative of the Kiseru's Rau, the length of bamboo or reed that joins the traditional metal bowl with its metal mouthpiece, and it comprises four evenly spaced knuckles of the dense grass. A divot in the bamboo is continued through the top of the shank, stylistically melding the disparate materials, and the steady rhythm of the extension naturally leads the eye to the stem: rendered to almost perfectly emulate the Suikuchi and Kuchimoto and pairing to the bamboo with a metal tenon. The Kiseru's mouthpiece is one of its most iconic elements, and here Kikuchi has shaped the tapering length of black vulcanite with a distinct plumpness and rounding at the base, swiftly diminishing to the bit. The trimness of the mouthpiece is further enhanced thanks to slenderization from the flanks as well, creating a thin button and completing the aesthetic tribute with impressive flair. Dressed in a crisp, inky sandblast, the stummel showcases rippling ring grain flowing down the bowl, while the slightly lighter tones of the bamboo provide striking contrast.