Jean Dunand

The painter, decorator and architect, Serge Rovinsky collaborated with Jean Dunand on a regular basis. Dunand was indeed known for working with some of the most eminent cabinet makers and artists of his time, which beside Rovinsky, included Paul Jouve, Jean Lambert-Rucki, Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Pierre Legrain. One of the two artists’ most important commissions was for Nadine Oxnard, an American painter living in Paris, who notably purchased the black lacquered sideboard by Jean Dunand and Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann for the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs, Industriels et Modernes in 1925. They produced for her a series of important pieces of furniture, designed by Rovinsky and lacquered by Dunand and the Charpentier workshop. The commission included the present daybed made in 1928, likely a unique piece as it is certainly the only recorded example of the model. The daybed presents with a stunning black lacquer surface punctuated with exceedingly fine and beautiful eggshell particles on the backrest, resulting in a superb stardust quality rarely seen in the rest of Dunand’s oeuvre. The stunning rectangular structure of the piece, grounded by a linear and geometric base and enhanced with curvy lines connecting the backrest to the frame, creates a sense of Art Deco elegance and timeless refinement that can only been seen in the works of the greats from the period. This is one of only four bed designs credited to Dunand in the catalogue raisonne, making the present offering not only a rare and significant piece in the artist’s oeuvre but also a masterpiece of Art Deco craftsmanship in and of itself.