Sandblasted Ryukin Tobacco Pipe

Alex Florov, before immigrating to the United States, restored furniture for a museum in his native country of Russia. That job gave him experience working with tools and handing delicate materials, and unknowingly primed him for his future career as a pipe maker. After settling in Chicago, Florov worked as an industrial designer for a number of years until, in 2004, his father-in-law challenged him to make a pipe. Since then, Florov has committed himself to the craft, and he produces a number of unique shapes like this Ryukin.

The Ryukin is a signature shape from Florov, crafted as a subtle nod to the work of Kei-ichi Gotoh, and is named after the Ryukin goldfish, a species that's distinctive thanks to its curved hump behind the head. It's a fascinating design that comprises two rounded discs, one of which forms the bowl and other of which makes up the shank. These discs are adjoined by a pinched transition, resulting in a rather distinctive profile. This particular Ryukin features an oval-shaped bowl and shank, both of which are quite stout and supple. Though the bowl is noticeably taller and wider, the shank here is shaped to mirror the bowl, producing a sense of visual harmony throughout the composition. The shank, additionally, curls in a lopsided manner and can be viewed peaking around the side of the bowl: a design cue that further visually aligns the bowl and shank. An earthy sandblast dresses the stummel and brings vivid definition to a constellation of birdseye across the bowl's fore wall, adding a wealth of tactile and visual detail to the briar.