Smooth Acorn Tobacco Pipe

Brazilian carver Luis Lavos gained an appreciation for woodworking as a child in his grandfather's workshop. He grew up to study graphic arts, but his early appreciation for woodwork never left him, so it seemed only natural for him to take up pipe making. He learned an immense amount about the craft from Sabina Santos, Premal Chheda, and Hans "Former" Nielsen, and Lavos cites Tom Eltang and Jess Chonowitsch as influences on his work. Danish influence is evident in this Acorn offering, as it possesses the same supple curves, precise line work, and organic sensibility found in that school of design.

A bulbous bowl with a inflated rim, high-set waistline, and rotund curvature stand poised at the fore of an ovoid shank and abbreviated stem. The bowl gradually tapers from the rim toward the heel, coming to the form's characteristic pointed spur, but here the angular protrusion is orientated at the fore of the composition, appearing almost like an extension of the shank. The cheeked transition and the visual disparity between the rim and heel give the bowl a sense of independence within the composition, a design choice that allows each piece of the design to be appreciated on its own. The shank broadens rapidly across its length and curls to one side, resulting in an asymmetrical appearance that further heightens the shape's organic aesthetic. The stummel wears a handsome, smoky smooth finish that reveals dense whorls of birdseye across the rim and windswept flame grain across either flank of the bowl.