Snuff Box (Tabatière)
c. 1745–1750
Medium
Tin-glazed soft-paste porcelain with enamel decoration; gilded metal
Dimensions
6.2 × 8.6 × 8.2 cm
Classification
Ceramic
Department
Decorative Art and Design
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
The Norweb Collection
Accession Number
1983.59
Tags
About this artwork
This snuff box’s decoration departs from the practice of early Chantilly porcelain that drew inspiration from Chinese and Japanese porcelain compositions, techniques, and motifs. Rather than compositions modeled directly from East-Asian porcelain, the paintings on this box may have been influenced by European chinoiserie, imitations of Chinese and Japanese decoration that pulled from the European imagination rather than accurate depictions of these cultures.
About the Artist
Chantilly Porcelain Factory (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...