Ser Jacopo Pre-1994 Picta Van Gogh 1 S2 Partially Sandblasted Pot w/ Silver Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

Ser Jacopo is one of the most famous contemporary examples of high-grade, workshop-made Italian pipes. It also belongs to a very special tradition in Italian pipe making, having been established by Giancarlo Guidi and Bruno Sordini after the two had left another great Italian workshop, Mastro de Paja. Together, Guidi and Sordini created a brand of pipes that reflected their Renaissance sensibilities – even the figurehead of Ser Jacopo happens to be taken from a painting of a nobleman from centuries past—one that would soon become esteemed for creating unique and beautiful tobacco pipes that smoked just as perfectly as they looked.

Ser Jacopo’s Picta series takes inspiration from pipes as represented in the arts—or, if you’re so inclined, in other forms of art. While this is certainly not without precedent, such Peterson’s Sherlock Holmes series, Ser Jacopo’s approach is relatively unique in that its source of inspiration are works of famous painters. There are several subseries of the broader Picta series and each is dedicated to the works of a singular fine artist, such as Picasso and Magritte, and each Picta model takes its design from pipes featured in one of those artists’ works. This would seem a simple task, but Ser Jacopo’s choice of artists leans heavily into avant-garde movements of the late 19th and early 20th century. The resulting designs are, therefore, highly distinctive, as the works they’re based on are far removed from “traditional” art movements.

Ser Jacopo’s very first Picta series paid tribute to the Dutch post-impressionist painter Vincent Van Gogh, and the very first design in that series was this one, the Picta Van Gogh No. 1. The design is based on one of Van Gogh’s self-portraits during his final years and battles with mental illness, the 1889 Self-portrait with bandaged Ear and Pipe. It’s a sad, but still very beautiful painting, and Ser Jacopo’s tribute is strikingly faithful to the source (I recommend checking it out for yourself, as it really is quite something).

Interestingly, though Ser Jacopo continues to make the various models from each of the Picta series to this day, this particular rendition is an early one, as evinced by its coral dot stem inlay, a logo which Ser Jacopo phased out around the mid-1990s. I wouldn’t be able to say whether it’s from the very first issue of the Picta Van Gogh, though it’s certainly closer than any made today.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, with an original bowl coating.

Details:

Length: 5.5″ / 139.7mm

Bowl Width: 0.82 / 20.82mm

Bowl Depth: 1.74″ / 44.19mm

Weight: 1.9oz / 54g