Jean Dunand, French (born Switzerland), 1877-1942 Dresser Set, 1925-30 lacquer on copper, lacquer on wood, and crushed eggshell Lent by the Minneapolis Institute of Art, The Modermism Collection, Gift of Norwest Bank Minnesota 2025.66.01-.03 The bright, stippled decoration on this mirror, covered box, and plateau is achieved by delicately arranging eggshell fragments on fresh lacquer. Once dry, the eggshell layer would be smoothed down and covered with a final glossy lacquer coat. In designer Jean Dunand’s studio, workers primarily from France’s colonies in Cambodia, Laos, and parts of China and Vietnam (then known as French Indochina) carried out these steps with precision. After learning the basics of lacquerwork from Japanese artist Seizo Sugawara, Dunand began to experiment with the medium in his own workshop. His exploratory approach lent itself to striking graphic designs in furniture, jewelry, bookbindings, and even the interiors of luxurious automobiles-including two presented at the 1925 Paris Exhibition, illustrated above.