Christian Ruetz Smooth Horn w/ Masur Birch Handmade Briar Pipe, New

Tyrol’s Christian Ruetz may well be the most exciting and acclaimed pipe maker to have come out of Austria since Peter Matzhold. A committed pipe smoker since his youth, Ruetz crafted his first pipe in 2014, using a carving knife gifted by his father-in-law and wood from a cherry tree. Ruetz was, from then on, hooked and soon moved onto briar, though he has maintained a relatively low-tech approach to pipe construction throughout in his career. Though Ruetz’s experiments with briar began a decade ago, in recent years his exercises in style have coalesced into an instantly recognizable identity, which has coincided with a no less than meteoric rise within the international pipe community and industry. As is something of a tradition for today’s artisans, Ruetz has spent time in the workshop of Denmark’s Tom Eltang further refining his techniques, yet it must also be stressed that Ruetz’s design philosophy is distinct from—and, to an extent, contrary to—that of much of modern Scandinavian pipe making. Against the functionalism of Eltang et al., Ruetz is far more of a Romantik. In his own words, his style is encompassed by three words: Natur, Rauheit, and Imperfektion, (roughly, “nature,” “ruggedness/rawness,” and “imperfection”). This style and underlying ethos comes from a life spent recognizing the natural world for what it is—including the sublime, towering ranges of the Eastern Alps visible from his workshop windows. In addition to his signature “Broken” motif pipes, Christian Ruetz also spends a fair amount of time exploring the staples of post-war artisan pipe making. But he does so in a way that channels his particular, naturalistic design philosophy, transforming those shapes in the process. Here, for example, we find Ruetz turning his attention to the horn though it’s a far cry from the rigid geometries found in the Oliphant, or in adjacent Scandinavian standards. Instead, there is more of a floral character to it than an animal one, with a bowl that dips and rises like the bud as it disappears in the bursting-forth of the blossom (forgive me, I have always wanted to include Hegel somewhere in one of these). Accent-wise, the pipe similarly follows Ruetz’s Romantic inclinations. As with another pipe in this latest batch, Ruetz’s horn is capped at its shank end with a ring of masur birch, a material favored by contemporary pipe makers for its striking contrast of hues and irregular patterning, a quality that stems from a natural, genetic mutation of the silver birch tree.   Details: Length: 6″ / 152.4mm Bowl Width: 0.79 / 20.07mm Bowl Depth: 1.18″ / 30.02mm Weight: 1.3oz / 36g