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Cooke, James T.: Difference between revisions
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[[File:AMBER BARK Natural Standing Dublin.jpeg|thumb|The Standing Dublin, A Cooke Signature Shape]] | [[File:AMBER BARK Natural Standing Dublin.jpeg|thumb|The Standing Dublin, A Cooke Signature Shape|alt=]] | ||
Vermont native | Vermont native "J. T." (James Tanner) Cooke, (b. 1949) has variously been called “the Bo Nordh of the blast,” “the supreme master” and “the Tessla of Sandblasting.” <ref>Fred J. Hanna, ''The Perfect Smoke'' , 146; David M., “In A Class All His Own,” ''Tobacco Days,'' August 8, 2011. http://tobaccodays.com/2011/08/j-t-cooke-in-a-class-all-his-own/ accessed 1/4/2021; Chuck Stanion, “J. T. Cooke: The Tesla of Pipe Sandblasting,” https://www.smokingpipes.com/smokingpipesblog/single.cfm/post/jt-cooke-the-tesla-pipe-sandblasting , accessed 1/4/2021. | ||
</ref> In 2022, he was awarded Doctor of Pipes by the Chicago Pipe Collectors Club, the equivalent of the Hollywood Oscar for Lifetime Achievement. <ref>Chuck Stanion, “Doctors and Masters of Pipes: A Timeline,” https://www.smokingpipes.com/smokingpipesblog/single.cfm/post/doctors-and-masters-pipes-timeline?utm_source=Smokingpipes.com&utm_campaign=18848e7cd7-Sun_Jun_12_2022_DailyReader&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_0e8b6a473f-18848e7cd7-209228005 , accessed June 12, 2022.</ref> He has made two pipes of the year for ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine, one in 1999 (in a run of 250) and a second (in a run of 50) in 2008. In 2005, he made an edition of 25 straight dublins for the NASPC club pipe. <ref>http://www.naspc.org/Pipe%20of%20the%20Year.htm, accessed 6/10/22.</ref> His pipes are renowned for offering a tactile and visual experience unlike any others in the world and his work is in such high and continuous demand that commissioned pipes have sometimes taken three to four years, resulting in a robust estate market where his pipes often sell for more than newly commissioned ones. | </ref> In 2022, he was awarded Doctor of Pipes by the Chicago Pipe Collectors Club, the equivalent of the Hollywood Oscar for Lifetime Achievement. <ref>Chuck Stanion, “Doctors and Masters of Pipes: A Timeline,” https://www.smokingpipes.com/smokingpipesblog/single.cfm/post/doctors-and-masters-pipes-timeline?utm_source=Smokingpipes.com&utm_campaign=18848e7cd7-Sun_Jun_12_2022_DailyReader&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_0e8b6a473f-18848e7cd7-209228005 , accessed June 12, 2022.</ref> He has made two pipes of the year for ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine, one in 1999 (in a run of 250) and a second (in a run of 50) in 2008. In 2005, he made an edition of 25 straight dublins for the NASPC club pipe. <ref>http://www.naspc.org/Pipe%20of%20the%20Year.htm, accessed 6/10/22.</ref> His pipes are renowned for offering a tactile and visual experience unlike any others in the world and his work is in such high and continuous demand that commissioned pipes have sometimes taken three to four years, resulting in a robust estate market where his pipes often sell for more than newly commissioned ones. | ||
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== Design Language == | == Design Language == | ||
[[File:C002 Workshop.jpg|thumb|Vermont Basement Workshop, 1997 (Courtesy ''Pipes & Tobacos'' magazine)]] | [[File:C002 Workshop.jpg|thumb|Vermont Basement Workshop, 1997 (Courtesy ''Pipes & Tobacos'' magazine)]] | ||
J. T.’s design language can be understood as based in part on classic English shapes—particularly the Dunhill Shell and Barling Fossils—and in part on his own interpretations of current and past popular shapes, or what French pipe critic Erwin Van Hove calls “contemporary classicism.” <ref>Erwin Van Hove, “Go West!” reprinted in ''Pipes & Tobaccos,'' Spring 2004, 14-19.</ref> It is perhaps convenient to consider Cooke’s work as three organically evolving stages, similar to that routinely used by classical music critics. | J. T.’s design language can be understood as based in part on classic English shapes—particularly the [[Dunhill Shell]] and [[Barling]] Fossils—and in part on his own interpretations of current and past popular shapes, or what French pipe critic Erwin Van Hove calls “contemporary classicism.” <ref>Erwin Van Hove, “Go West!” reprinted in ''Pipes & Tobaccos,'' Spring 2004, 14-19.</ref> It is perhaps convenient to consider Cooke’s work as three organically evolving stages, similar to that routinely used by classical music critics. | ||
The Early Period runs from Cooke's departure as Art Director for WCAX-TV in 1976 through about 1999. He pursued both pipe repair and pipe making first with The Briar Workshop and then with Levin Pipes International. | The Early Period runs from Cooke's departure as Art Director for WCAX-TV in 1976 through about 1999. He pursued both pipe repair and pipe making first with The [[Briar Workshop]] and then with Levin Pipes International. | ||
In the transitional Middle Period, J. T. set up under his own name, abandoned repair work and hung up his shingle as an artisan increasingly dedicated to sandblasting, which he has called “the bastard child” of pipe making. It ran from his first Pipe of the Year for ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine in 1999 until around the time of his second Pipe of the Year for that magazine in 2008. | In the transitional Middle Period, J. T. set up under his own name, abandoned repair work and hung up his shingle as an artisan increasingly dedicated to sandblasting, which he has called “the bastard child” of pipe making. It ran from his first Pipe of the Year for ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine in 1999 until around the time of his second Pipe of the Year for that magazine in 2008. | ||
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'''OKFA'''—“Old Knarly Friend Algeria" –briar from Algeria (no longer used)</blockquote> | '''OKFA'''—“Old Knarly Friend Algeria" –briar from Algeria (no longer used)</blockquote> | ||
There have only been two shank stamps indicating the authenticity of a Cooke pipe: | There have only been two shank stamps indicating the authenticity of a Cooke pipe: | ||
'''J. T. Cooke'''—on pipes after 1996. | '''J.T. & D. Cooke'''—on pipes made before 1996; “D” refers to ex-wife Deb who teamed with Cooke as sander when they were making pipes for other American labels. <ref>“In A Class All His Own.”</ref> | ||
[[File:C004 Nomenclature JT&D 2008 stamp.jpg|left|thumb|Cooke's nomenclature shank stamp and the year stamp placement]] | |||
Cooke has disavowed the authenticity of pipes with the '''LPI''' shank stamp as contract work, well-made but not ''genuine'' Cooke pipes. <ref>“Tesla.”</ref> | '''J. T. Cooke'''—on pipes after 1996. [[File:C004 Nomenclature JT&D 2008 stamp.jpg|left|thumb|Cooke's nomenclature shank stamp and the year stamp placement]] | ||
Cooke has disavowed the authenticity of pipes with the '''LPI''' shank stamp (for Levin Pipes International) as contract work, well-made but not ''genuine'' Cooke pipes. <ref>“Tesla.”</ref> | |||
In addition, Cooke's pipes have always used the Chinese Yin and Yang for stem identification, appropriate since it symbolizes how opposites may actually be interconnected | In addition, Cooke's pipes have always used the Chinese Yin and Yang for stem identification, appropriate since it symbolizes how opposites may actually be interconnected and interdependent: a non-dualistic understanding in which thesis and antithesis are transcended. | ||
=== Early Period === | === Early Period === | ||
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Cooke also agreed to do a second Pipe of the Year for ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine for 2008, a distinctive brandy in an edition of fifty numbered pipes. | Cooke also agreed to do a second Pipe of the Year for ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine for 2008, a distinctive brandy in an edition of fifty numbered pipes. | ||
[[File:C010 P&t 2008 BRANDY Smokershaven.jpg|thumb|The ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine 2008 Pipe of the Year (courtesy Smokers Haven)|alt=]] | [[File:C010 P&t 2008 BRANDY Smokershaven.jpg|thumb|The ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine 2008 Pipe of the Year (courtesy Smokers Haven)|alt=]] | ||
While J. T.’s shape catalog has become more and more distinctive and uniquely his own over the past ten to fifteen years, there is constant experimentation and new shapes still appear with regularity. <ref>Making a regular visit to the Gallery page at [https://www.Cookepipes.com www.Cookepipes.com] reveals Cooke's on-going innovation as well as unifying aesthetic.</ref> For example, the Christmas Bell, a dublin bell shape with special stain and custom stem, has appeared since 2016, but only one is made annually, just before the holiday. | While J. T.’s shape catalog has become more and more distinctive and uniquely his own over the past ten to fifteen years, there is constant experimentation and new shapes still appear with regularity. <ref>Making a regular visit to the Gallery page at [https://www.Cookepipes.com www.Cookepipes.com] reveals Cooke's on-going innovation as well as unifying aesthetic.</ref> For example, the Christmas Bell, a dublin bell shape with special stain and custom stem, has appeared since 2016, but only one is made annually, just before the holiday. | ||
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== Engineering == | == Engineering == | ||
'' “I average one pipe a week, and that is a a long week of work.” ''—J. T. Cooke <ref>Email to Mark Irwin, June 24, 2022.</ref> | '' “I average one pipe a week, and that is a a long week of work.” ''—J. T. Cooke (2022) <ref>Email to Mark Irwin, June 24, 2022.</ref> | ||
=== Airflow === | === Airflow === | ||
It goes without saying that pipe smokers are initially attracted visually to the pipes they choose to smoke. Far more important but either ignored or underestimated is a pipe’s engineering, on what’s going on inside the pipe. When J. T. parted from Briar Workshop upon their relocation to Florida to make his own pipes, he was, writes Chuck Stanion, “entranced by the possibilities of improved internal engineering and the reduction of smoke turbulence within a pipe.” <ref>Stanion, “Tesla.”</ref> | It goes without saying that pipe smokers are initially attracted visually to the pipes they choose to smoke. Far more important but either ignored or underestimated is a pipe’s engineering, on what’s going on inside the pipe. When J. T. parted from Briar Workshop upon their relocation to Florida to make his own pipes, he was, writes Chuck Stanion, “entranced by the possibilities of improved internal engineering and the reduction of smoke turbulence within a pipe.” <ref>Stanion, “Tesla.”</ref> | ||
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=== Blasting === | === Blasting === | ||
[[File:C18 stummel and rodP&T2008 08.jpg|thumb|Hand-poured acrylic rod and stummel for a | [[File:C18 stummel and rodP&T2008 08.jpg|thumb|Hand-poured acrylic rod and stummel for a bent billiard 65|alt=]] | ||
Cooke writes, “Five stage blasting began around 1999. It’s never a hard and fast rule; it all depends on what the briar needs.” <ref>Email from J. T. Cooke to Mark Irwin, January 3, 2022.</ref> In “Down this Blasted Path,” the short essay Cooke provides on his website, he details the stages: | Cooke writes, “Five stage blasting began around 1999. It’s never a hard and fast rule; it all depends on what the briar needs.” <ref>Email from J. T. Cooke to Mark Irwin, January 3, 2022.</ref> In “Down this Blasted Path,” the short essay Cooke provides on his website, he details the stages: | ||
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Cooke has made his own hand-poured acrylic stem rod almost from the beginning of his work as a pipe maker. He works primarily with three colors: reproduction amber (his earliest), amber bark and black. He also, however, frequently uses ruby (a deep purple swirl) as well as creates custom color combinations. | Cooke has made his own hand-poured acrylic stem rod almost from the beginning of his work as a pipe maker. He works primarily with three colors: reproduction amber (his earliest), amber bark and black. He also, however, frequently uses ruby (a deep purple swirl) as well as creates custom color combinations. | ||
[[File:C16 P&T2008 stem rod.jpg|thumb|Cooke's hand-poured acrylic stem rod (courtesy ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine)]] | [[File:C16 P&T2008 stem rod.jpg|thumb|Cooke's hand-poured acrylic stem rod (courtesy ''Pipes & Tobaccos'' magazine)]] | ||
Even with J. T.’s standard colors, however, no two mixed-color stems will ever be alike, as the poured “colors can end up in all different locations and patterns on the stem.” <ref>Email from J. T. Cooke to Mark Irwin, June 11, 2022.</ref> The uniqueness of such pipes is thus further enhanced, often strikingly so. Because these are hand-poured acrylics, they | Even with J. T.’s standard colors, however, no two mixed-color stems will ever be alike, as the poured “colors can end up in all different locations and patterns on the stem.” <ref>Email from J. T. Cooke to Mark Irwin, June 11, 2022.</ref> The uniqueness of such pipes is thus further enhanced, often strikingly so. Because these are hand-poured acrylics, they are more flexible than factory acrylic and one of the only instances in the artisan world of a pipe maker creating as well as turning stems for his own pipes. | ||
== Biography == | == Biography == | ||
Cooke was born in | Cooke was born in Connecticut in 1949 and has one sister (a retired university professor) and two grown children. <ref>In A Class All His Own.”</ref> His father was a biology teacher with exceptional DIY skills which the his son would inherit, later building his own house from scratch. <ref>“Tesla” and “In A Class All His Own.”</ref> As a child, J. T. experienced recurring high fevers from severe bouts of strep throat. In the interview with David M., he attributes his sickliness not only with developing his imagination but with giving him a certain existential outlook on life: “I had a certain appreciation for trying to enjoy every day because I never knew if it was going to be my last [which] gave me a certain amount of license to experiment and live life and pursue what I wanted to pursue, because nobody is guaranteed tomorrow.” <ref>“In A Class All His Own.”</ref> | ||
In 1972, Cooke graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration. <ref>Email to Mark Irwin, January 3, 2022.</ref> It is worth mentioning that this prestigious school, which has a steep 27% acceptance rate, includes alumni like David Burne of the Talking Heads, actor James Franco, authors Chris Van Allsburg and Brian Selznick (both Caldecott Medalists), and film maker Gus Van Sant among others. <ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhode_Island_School_of_Design</ref> Cooke is undoubtedly RISD’s only artisan pipe-maker. | In 1972, Cooke graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration. <ref>Email to Mark Irwin, January 3, 2022.</ref> It is worth mentioning that this prestigious school, which has a steep 27% acceptance rate, includes alumni like David Burne of the Talking Heads, actor James Franco, authors Chris Van Allsburg and Brian Selznick (both Caldecott Medalists), and film maker Gus Van Sant among others. <ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhode_Island_School_of_Design</ref> Cooke is undoubtedly RISD’s only artisan pipe-maker. | ||
[[File:Hot Rod Chubby Dublin.jpg|thumb|J.T.'s chubby dublin with a custom-color "Hot Rod" stem]] | [[File:Hot Rod Chubby Dublin.jpg|thumb|J.T.'s chubby dublin with a custom-color "Hot Rod" stem]] | ||
On graduation, Cooke took a job with television station WCAX as its Art Director, where he worked through the mid-seventies. He decided he wanted to stop smoking cigarettes and his wife Deb bought him a carve-it-yourself pipe kit. “After I made the first one,” he recalls, “I knew that I finally found something that I was totally captivated with.” <ref>“In A Class All His Own.”</ref> A year or two later, he took a job at The Briar Workshop working for Elliott Nachwalter and Jorg Jemelka. <ref>Stanion, “Tesla.”</ref> The Briar Workshop laid the groundwork for American artisan pipe making and included Danish designer pipe maker Finn Meyan Andersen and Cooke’s good friend Brad Pohlmann. <ref>“Briar Workshop,” ''Pipedia,'' [[Briar Workshop|https://pipedia.org/wiki/Briar_Workshop]], accessed June 13, 2022.</ref> | On graduation, Cooke took a job with television station WCAX as its Art Director, where he worked through the mid-seventies. He decided he wanted to stop smoking cigarettes and his wife Deb bought him a carve-it-yourself pipe kit. “After I made the first one,” he recalls, “I knew that I finally found something that I was totally captivated with.” <ref>“In A Class All His Own.”</ref> A year or two later, he took a job at The Briar Workshop working for [[Nachwalter|Elliott Nachwalter]] and [[Jorg Jemelka]]. <ref>Stanion, “Tesla.”</ref> The Briar Workshop laid the groundwork for American artisan pipe making and included Danish designer pipe maker [[Finn Meyan Andersen]] and Cooke’s good friend [[Brad Pohlmann]]. <ref>“Briar Workshop,” ''Pipedia,'' [[Briar Workshop|https://pipedia.org/wiki/Briar_Workshop]], accessed June 13, 2022.</ref> | ||
When the Briar Workshop relocated to Florida a few years later, Cooke remained in Vermont to make his own pipes. Not long afterwards he met Barry Levin of Levin Pipes International (LPI), located in Craftsbury, Vermont, who is widely regarded as the founding father of the estate pipe market in the US. While LPI sold some of Cooke’s first pipes, the company was more important in providing him the opportunity to restore and study thousands of pipes, laying the foundation for his understanding of airflow, engineering and design language. <ref>Stanion, “Tesla.”</ref> | When the Briar Workshop relocated to Florida a few years later, Cooke remained in Vermont to make his own pipes. Not long afterwards he met Barry Levin of Levin Pipes International (LPI), located in Craftsbury, Vermont, who is widely regarded as the founding father of the estate pipe market in the US. While LPI sold some of Cooke’s first pipes, the company was more important in providing him the opportunity to restore and study thousands of pipes, laying the foundation for his understanding of airflow, engineering and design language. <ref>Stanion, “Tesla.”</ref> | ||
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After Levin’s untimely death, J. T. continued restoring pipes on his own. The repetitive operations involved and sheer amount of work led to severe carpal tunnel syndrome. “I came very close to losing my pipe making career,” he recalled. His fans and friends in the hobby, knowing of his plight, took up a fund and, unbeknownst to Cooke, collected enough money to allow him to have the operations he needed in January of 2000, which didn’t cure the problem. Knowing he would have to make a change, J. T. gave up restorations in favor of full-time pipe making. <ref>Chuck Stanion, “Master Blaster,” ''Pipes & Tobaccos,'' Spring 2008, 14-19.</ref> | After Levin’s untimely death, J. T. continued restoring pipes on his own. The repetitive operations involved and sheer amount of work led to severe carpal tunnel syndrome. “I came very close to losing my pipe making career,” he recalled. His fans and friends in the hobby, knowing of his plight, took up a fund and, unbeknownst to Cooke, collected enough money to allow him to have the operations he needed in January of 2000, which didn’t cure the problem. Knowing he would have to make a change, J. T. gave up restorations in favor of full-time pipe making. <ref>Chuck Stanion, “Master Blaster,” ''Pipes & Tobaccos,'' Spring 2008, 14-19.</ref> | ||
[[File:C17 P&T2008 01.jpg|thumb|At the blasting cabinet in 2008 (courtesy ''P&T'')]] | [[File:C17 P&T2008 01.jpg|thumb|At the blasting cabinet in 2008 (courtesy ''P&T'')]] | ||
While Cooke’s earliest sandblasts involved a two-stage sandblasting process, as his career has progressed the blasting has evolved to three and then four or five stages, depending on the density of the wood and size of the bowl. Since the 1990’s, J. T. has supported many pipe shows by taking a table and always has enjoyed talking to attendees and working with collectors. Listening to his customers has led him to develop certain shapes like his classic bent bulldog. In 2010, working with Rich Esserman, Cooke utilized the lines of old Dunhill magnums and made his own style of Magnum bents and billiards. <ref>Rich Esserman, email to Doctor of Pipes, March 19, 2022.</ref> | While Cooke’s earliest sandblasts involved a two-stage sandblasting process, as his career has progressed the blasting has evolved to three and then four or five stages, depending on the density of the wood and size of the bowl. Since the 1990’s, J. T. has supported many pipe shows by taking a table and always has enjoyed talking to attendees and working with collectors. Listening to his customers has led him to develop certain shapes like his classic bent bulldog. In 2010, working with Rich Esserman, Cooke utilized the lines of old Dunhill magnums and made his own style of Magnum bents and billiards. <ref>Rich Esserman, email to Doctor of Pipes, March 19, 2022.</ref> Since that time Cooke has been immersed in the continuing pursuit of excellence in his blasting and engineering, continuing to refine and perfect his pipes. | ||
== Achievement and Legacy == | == Achievement and Legacy == | ||
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Actually, the belief is quite puzzling in many ways. When one thinks about it, all sandblasted pipes are ‘sand carved’ to some degree and in some way. That is why the blasting is done! In making a single pipe, Jim told me that he spends from twelve to fifteen hours on sandblasting alone, quite in addition to all the other time-consuming steps that go into that pipe. Does this make his sandblasts somehow different than most others? Of course it does! Jim’s three-stage method seems to consistently bring out more detail, depth and definition, in my opinion, than anyone. That is why his pipes are so damned much in demand. Jim Cooke is the ‘Bo Nordh of the Blast.’ Jim does not create false graining patterns with his technique. In fact, he told me that his first pass is done specifically to expose the grain patterns, which he further exposes and details in his follow steps. <ref>''The Perfect Smoke,'' 146.</ref></blockquote> | Actually, the belief is quite puzzling in many ways. When one thinks about it, all sandblasted pipes are ‘sand carved’ to some degree and in some way. That is why the blasting is done! In making a single pipe, Jim told me that he spends from twelve to fifteen hours on sandblasting alone, quite in addition to all the other time-consuming steps that go into that pipe. Does this make his sandblasts somehow different than most others? Of course it does! Jim’s three-stage method seems to consistently bring out more detail, depth and definition, in my opinion, than anyone. That is why his pipes are so damned much in demand. Jim Cooke is the ‘Bo Nordh of the Blast.’ Jim does not create false graining patterns with his technique. In fact, he told me that his first pass is done specifically to expose the grain patterns, which he further exposes and details in his follow steps. <ref>''The Perfect Smoke,'' 146.</ref></blockquote> | ||
[[File:C21 P&T2008 02.jpg|thumb|Second pass in the blasting cabinet (courtesy ''P&T'')]] | [[File:C21 P&T2008 02.jpg|thumb|Second pass in the blasting cabinet (courtesy ''P&T'')]] | ||
Cooke has undoubtedly been the catalyst in popularizing blasting so that the once lowly and “bastard son” of briar pipes is now seen on equal terms with smooth-finished pipes and by many smokers even preferred. | Cooke has undoubtedly been the catalyst in popularizing blasting so that the once lowly and “bastard son” of briar pipes is now seen on equal terms with smooth-finished pipes and by many smokers even preferred. "Doctor of Pipes" indeed. | ||
== Bibliography & Media == | == Bibliography & Media == | ||
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www.cookepipes.com | www.cookepipes.com | ||
514 Apple Tree Point Rd | |||
Burlington, VT 05401 | Burlington, VT 05401 | ||
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<references /> | <references /> | ||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooke, J._T.}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooke, J._T.}} | ||
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