On October 10th, Christie’s in New York hosted an auction of the works of François-Xavier Lalanne—half of the artist duo Les Lalannes alongside his wife, Claude. The sale, titled “François-Xavier Lalanne, Sculpteur | Collection Dorothée Lalanne,” and drawn from the collection of the artist’s daughter Dorothée Lalanne, fetched $59 million. This event featured 14 lots exceeding the $1 million mark, underscoring the artist’s steadily increasing prices on the market.
The auction presented 70 lots, with 97% of the work selling above their high estimates. These results align with a notable year for Les Lalannes. Ben Brown Fine Arts is currently presenting a comprehensive exhibition of the artists in Venice titled “Planète Lalanne,” running concurrently with the Venice Biennale 2024. Earlier this year, Kasmin presented a buzzy solo exhibition of the artists in New York titled “Zoophites,” which marked the 60th anniversary of the couple’s first joint exhibition in 1964.
The Christie’s auction received further buzz from a six-day exhibition curated by Simon Porte Jacquemus, which preceded the sale. “The excitement in build-up to the sale was mirrored by our clients’ enthusiasm, and the results were everything we hoped for and more,” said Alex Heminway, international head of design at Christie’s.
The top lot of the night was Très Grand Centaure (2001), which sold for $7.54 million—nearly nine times its low estimate. This was followed by Le Très Grand Ours (2009), a towering bronze statue of a bear, which doubled its high estimate, selling at $6.1 million. The following three top lots include:
- Lapin à Vent de Tourtour (2002) sold for $2.95 million, three times its low estimate.
- Âne de Nathalie (2005), depicting a donkey, sold for $2.5 million, well above its $1 million high estimate.
- Âne Bâté (2005)—another bronze statue of a donkey— sold for $2.3 million, above its $1 million estimate.
The sale is preceded by recent years of record-breaking sales. On October 20, 2023, Lalannes’s Rhinocrétaire I (1964) sold for €18.3 million ($19.96 million) at Christie’s in Paris, setting the artist’s current auction record.
