Lacquer that Bursts with Brilliance

The new S.T. Dupont Starburst Blue and Sunburst Black collections display the French atelier's decades of lacquering expertise.

- NICKY PESSAROFF

Lacquer is one of those tricky terms. We know what it is—a durable, waterproof, clear, or pigmented varnish used to coat and protect wood or metal—but that definition incorporates a number of different concepts. Are we talking shellac? Traditional Japanese and Chinese urushiol? Cellulose-based paints? Acrylic resins? All are lacquer. None are S.T. Dupont lacquer.

When Simon Tissot Dupont founded his eponymous company in 1872, his specialty was in luxury leather goods. With the rise of next-generation ships, trains, and automobiles through the late 19th and early 20th century, luxury luggage became too bulky and heavy for the new trans-Atlantic liners. To lighten the overall weight of its leather luggage, S.T. Dupont replaced the wood parts of its luggage with a metal alloy similar to aluminum coated with a lacquer veneer, halving the luggage's weight.

The first laquer pieces for S.T. Dupont luggage were made in what was then called Indochina (present-day Vietnam). Andre and Lucien Dupont, who took over the running of S.T. Dupont from their father, wished to master lacquering techniques for themselves. Like so many iconic elements of the Dupont oeuvre, its mastery of lacquer began as a series of coincidences.

In 1935, Lucien Dupont advertised for a new master plater for Dupont's metal-plating workshop in Paris, France. However, a typographical mistake caused the ad to read “looking for a metal lacquerer.” Russian émigré Georges Novossilitzeff, a traditionally trained lacquer artist, answered the call. Lucien immediately recognized the talent and vision of the man and hired him on the spot. "Novos," as Novossilitzeff became known, taught the brothers Dupont all the secrets he knew of Chinese lacquer application.