KOKOPELLI PIPES

I started getting into wood carving in 2010, during a year-long shaman diet in the Peruvian jungle, aided by an abundance of free time and red wood.

Palo Sangre, a Brazilian rosewood,

became my favorite wood to work with; it initially has quite interesting coloration and structure, and is long-lasting due to its high density.

For glazing And encrusting I use only materials found in nature.

A smoking pipe is the main instrument of Amazonian shamans - with its aid they both heal and wage war. Mapacho, Indian tobacco, is considered to be a sacred plant and the national heritage of Peru, and it does not cause any lung diseases.

For references I generally turn to the motifs of traditional architecture; for I have little personal creative ambition and I prefer not to get involved with other people's sketches.