Pipe Maker of the Month – J. Alan

Recently I came across the work of J. Alan Pipes and I was blown away!  This american pipe maker is truly an artist, I stumbled across him via his twitter account where he keeps his followers updated on his pipe making journey, all the way from sketches to the finished product.  I encourage you to check out his work.  And J. Alan if your reading does this count for a free pipe?  :)  Keep inspiring us and keep smoking.

From Start to Finish:

Amazing!

From his web site:

Art has always been part of my life.  Drawing with first crayon and paper as a toddler, pencil and paper as a child, and later with paint and canvas as a young adult I was regaled with stories of my grandmother and grandfather, both amateur and passionate artists, and my famous cousin, Andy Warhol.

Perhaps it was blood, but I am convinced it was simply a passion for the creation things—new things, strange things, beautiful things—that ultimately led me to buy two  blocks of briar and pre-formed stems during my first year of graduate work in the field of theology.  Guided by what little snippets of information that could be gleaned from books and the internet I completed my first pair of pipes with borrowed tools on the wooden floor of my in-laws’ home over Christmas break.  They were not very good, but I was falling in love.

I had made several pipes with the helpful guidance of Tyler Beard’s online pipemaking tutorial, he informed me that he was beginning a forum in which pipemakers could gather to share information.  This was the beginning of what is now Pipemakers’ Forum, an active online community that is home to all interested in the process of pipemaking.

The following summer I was introduced to Todd Johnson, who generously invited me to his New Haven workshop to teach me about hand making pipes.  The rest, as they say is history.  His lessons took, and I have been making pipes ever since.  Upon the completion of my studies in theology in 2006, I have made pipes my sole vocation.

As with any artist, we are influenced by the world surrounding us.  At the beginning designs are inherently mimetic as one explores the medium and designs to which he has been exposed.  I am no exception to this process, and am grateful to those whose work has been so influential to the development of my style.  I remain an avid student of pipe shapes, consciously studying and being inspired by the work of Jess Chonowitsch, Lars Ivarsson, and Bo Nordh in Scandinavia, Cornelius Maenz in Germany, Todd Johnson and Jody Davis in the United States, and Hiro Tokutomi, Kai Gotoh, and Takeo Arita in Japan.  Nevertheless, my work remains my own.

Pipe design is a careful calculus of influence and originality within a fairly restricting medium.  It is my desire to continue exploring new territory, simultaneously paying homage to the great artisans of the past and present.  As collectors and enthusiasts, you are part of the story as you enjoy, encourage, and collect my work.

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