Krška (Karel Krška)

Krška is the handmade pipe workshop carrying the name of Czech master Karel Krška. Krška became acquainted with pipemaking in the early 1990s and, in subsequent years, became one of the most cited pipe makers in his country. The workshop's products are known both for classic molds and for bowls that leave the wood's grain free; these two currents together form the brand's identity today.

Founding the Workshop

The first pipe records bearing Krška's name reach back, according to accounts, to 1992; these first attempts were made together with a colleague surnamed Kopa. The center of production, once it gained an independent identity, was Brno; the workshop's address was cited there for years before production later moved to Drnovice. The date of the move is not given in the sources.

The learning stage was not easy: it took years both to settle the making technique and to find a design language of his own, and recognition came only once this threshold had been crossed. Though the city changed, the method stayed the same; the pipes continue to be shaped individually, by hand.