Snuff Box (Tabatière)
Medium
gold and enamel
Dimensions
3.2 × 5.1 cm, l. 6.9 cm
Classification
Miscellaneous
Department
Decorative Art and Design
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Mrs. Edward B. Greene
Accession Number
1958.125
Tags
About this artwork
The miniature paintings that decorated snuff boxes were depicted in intricate detail requiring complex technical skill. This box’s miniatures are painted with enamel en plein, meaning the enamel has been applied directly to the metal of the box. A different enameling technique, basse-taille, is used to depict the doves and floral borders. Here, the gold has been chiseled away and filled with translucent enamel in order to produce a three-dimensional effect.
About the Artist
Francois Guillaume Tiron (French)
Georges Hugnet (1906–1974) was a multifaceted French artist, poet, writer, and critic whose innovative collages and graphic works bridged Dada and Surrealism. Born in Paris on July 11, 1906, he spent much of his early childhood in Buenos Aires, Argentina, returning to France around 1913. His early life and artistic training remain sparsely documented, with no records of formal art school attendanc...