Asano Eri is a lacquer artist born in Tokyo in 1986. After studying lacquer art at Tokyo University of the Arts, she furthered her training at the Kagawa Prefectural Lacquerware Research Institute, and works on the foundation of the chōshitsu (carved lacquer) and tsuishitsu (layered lacquer) techniques of Kagawa lacquerware. She develops into contemporary forms the technique of applying many layers of colored lacquer and carving through them to bring out patterns and luster. Seki Misato was born in Chiba Prefecture in 1984 and lives in Kanagawa Prefecture. She studied in the same lacquer art program at the same university as Asano. Her wearable lacquer work, created as her graduate completion project, received a purchase prize, and ever since she has consistently created contemporary jewelry that questions the relationship between the body and ornament, using the techniques of maki-e (sprinkled picture), raden (mother-of-pearl inlay), and kyūshitsu (lacquer coating). “Layer – Cube,” exhibited here, is a collaborative series with Seki Misato that makes the very layering of lacquer visible within a 5-centimeter cube. The two develop the concept, color scheme, and form together; Seki is responsible for the form design and metal fittings, and Asano for the layering of lacquer. Their collaborative works have been selected for international juried exhibitions such as Schmuck in Germany, and are held in the collection of a museum in Norway.