Focus on: Eugénie O'Kin Jubin

Eugénie O'Kin Jubin was a renowned tablet maker in France in the 1900s. A tablet maker? Yes, in the field of tablet making: she made delicate lathe pieces and an infinite number of small works in wood, gold, tortoiseshell, horn, mother-of-pearl and ivory. It was a profession then close to that of cabinetmaker or marquetry.

🇯🇵 Born in Japan, she witnessed the opening of her country to the world. O'kin lived between two cultures with a French father and a Japanese mother. This gave her a particular sensitivity to the arts and would influence the design of her pieces. Upon her arrival in France, she met Henri Simmen, her future husband and collaborator. She created some rare jewels, buttons and combs that she exhibited in 1907 at the Salon d'Automne and at the Société nationale des beaux-arts.

✏️ She uses delicate materials, organic gems like ivory, horn and coral. On her creations she sometimes adds gold studs and ebony pastilles.