This rare Art Deco straw marquetry lidded box is attributed to French designer Jean Michel Frank. The piece was expertly crafted in France circa 1930. The rectangular shape is stunning, refined, and geometric, and the interior is lined with dark wood. The underside of the box is finished with the identical geometric straw marquetry as the rest of the box. The box is not signed but similar in size and pattern to Jean-Michel Frank boxes, including the ones pictured in the Jean-Michel Frank book (check the reference below for further reading). 
 
Reference: Jean-Michel Frank (28 February 1895 – 8 March 1941) was a French interior designer known for minimalist interiors decorated with plain-lined, yet elegant, furniture made of luxurious materials, such as shagreen, mica, and intricate straw marquetry. He had an eye for exotic patterns, particularly in veneers, including those inspired by snake and sharkskin. His work became widely known in the 1930s when select, higher classes demanded his furniture. He is known for being associated with the Art Deco movement.
Frank sought to design uncluttered spaces with neutral color schemes and exotic patterns. His idea of simplicity extended to everything, including his wardrobe, where he owned forty of the same gray flannel shirts. Frank drew inspiration from Ancient Egypt, Louis XVI, and the Art Deco movement.
"The noble frames that have come to us from the past can receive today's creations," Jean Michel Frank. Frank collaborated with many designers and artists, such as Diego Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Emilio Terry, and Christian Berard.
In the 1920s, Frank and Adolphe Chanaux, a Parisian decorator, met and inaugurated a collaboration that launched them into the center of Parisian artistic life. Frank and Chanaux searched for balance and developed a classic expression of spaces. Together, they decorated apartments for Jean-Pierre Guerlain, Marie-Laure de Noailles, and Louis Aragon. In 1924, Jean René Guerrand appointed Frank to design a unique furniture collection. Part of this collection was the sheepskin Club Chair and Parchment-Covered Dressing Table.
Reports from refugees about the persecution of homosexuals and Jews prompted Jean-Michel Frank to leave Paris in 1940. By way of Lisbon, he emigrated to Buenos Aires.
Jean-Michel Frank collaborated with his friend and business partner Ignacio Pirovano on private and commercial projects in Argentina. Alberto Giacometti also collaborated with Frank to create terracotta objects such as floor lamps, vases, candle holders, and table lamps.
Frank was troubled by loss, depression, drug addiction, homophobic taunts, and anti-Semitism all his life. On 8 March 1941, while in New York City, he committed suicide at 46. Despite claims that Frank died by throwing himself from the window of the Manhattan apartment he was staying in, he overdosed on barbiturates. Maarten van Buuren, Jean Michel Frank's biographer and a professor of modern literature at Utrecht University in the Netherlands, confirmed this when reading Frank's autopsy report and death certificate.
Today, leading designers worldwide recognize Jean Michel Frank as one of the principal sources of inspiration for many contemporary designs. His works are highly sought after by collectors worldwide.
 
- Léopold Diego Sanchez, "Jean-Michel Frank", Editions du regard, Paris, 1980. Similar marquetry boxes on page 80.
- Galerie Jacques De Vos, "Aux sources du XXe Siècle - Jean Michel Frank - Volume 2", Paris 1990 (texts in French and English). Similar marquetry boxes are on page 109, along with a precious explanation of the partnership developed by Jean Michel Frank with Adolphe Chanaux on page 108.
 
About:
Jean-Michel Frank (28 February 1895 – 8 March 1941) was a French interior designer known for minimalist interiors decorated with plain-lined but elegant furniture made of luxury materials, such as shagreen, mica, and intricate straw marquetry.
He had an eye for exotic patterns, specifically in veneers, including snake and sharkskin. His work became widely known in the 1930s when select, higher classes demanded his furniture. He is known for being associated with the Art Deco movement.
Frank sought to design uncluttered spaces and feature neutral color schemes with exotic patterns. His idea of simplicity extended to everything up to his wardrobe, having owned forty of the same gray flannel shirts. Frank drew inspiration from Ancient Egypt, Louis XVI, and the Art Deco movement."
The noble frames that have come to us from the past can receive today's creations," Jean Michel Frank. During his career, Frank collaborated with designers and artists, such as Diego Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Emilio Terry, and Christian Berard.
In the 1920s, Frank and Adolphe Chanaux, a Parisian decorator, met and inaugurated a collaboration that launched them into the center of Parisian artistic life. Frank and Chanaux searched for balance and developed a classic expression of spaces. Together, they decorated apartments for Jean-Pierre Guerlain, Marie-Laure de Noailles, and Louis Aragon.
In 1924, Jean René Guerrand appointed Frank to design a unique collection of pieces of furniture. Part of this collection was the sheepskin Club Chair and Parchment-Covered Dressing Table.
Reports from refugees about the persecution of homosexuals and Jews prompted Jean-Michel Frank to leave Paris in 1940. By way of Lisbon, he emigrated to Buenos Aires. Jean-Michel Frank worked with his old friend and business associate, Ignacio Pirovano, in Argentina for private and commercial projects.
Alberto Giacometti collaborated with Frank to create terracotta objects like floor lamps, vases, candle holders, and table lamps.
Frank was troubled by loss, depression, drug addiction, homophobic taunts, and anti-Semitism all his life. On 8 March 1941, while in New York City, he committed suicide at 46. Despite claims that Frank died by throwing himself from the window of the Manhattan apartment he was staying in, he overdosed on barbiturates.
Maarten van Buuren, Jean Michel Frank's biographer and a professor of modern literature at Utrecht University in the Netherlands, confirmed this when reading Frank's autopsy report and death certificate.
Today, leading world designers recognize Jean Michel Frank as one of the significant sources of inspiration for many present-day designs. His works are highly sought after by leading collectors worldwide.
(Credit: Wikipedia).