CLAUDE & FRANÇOIS-XAVIER LALANNE

Ben Brown Fine Arts Hong Kong is honoured to present the exhibition Claude and François-Xavier Lalanne from 26 February to 29 March 2014.  This is the gallery's second exhibition of the Lalannes' work in Hong Kong, following a 2011 show that was met with great acclaim throughout the region.  This exhibition will bring together the elaborate and organically-inspired work of Claude Lalanne in the form of tables, chairs and chandeliers, including a coveted Croco Bureau, with the iconic and substantial animal forms of the late François-Xavier Lalanne.

The work of Claude and François-Xavier Lalanne, who are often referred to as Les Lalanne, defies categorisation: it is at once surrealist, classical, contemporary, fine art, decorative art, functional design, whimsical objets. The last of a generation of avant-garde artists in Paris, Claude is able to reminisce of their times living next door to Constantin Brancusi, travelling in the same circle as René Magritte and Max Ernst, and working with loyal collectors such as Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Bergé.  While Les Lalanne shared a studio and exhibited together throughout their careers, their oeuvres are entirely distinctive. Claude's work takes on a more sinuous and ethereal form, depicting flora and fauna evocative of the art nouveau movement. François-Xavier's works-including sheep, rhinoceroses, gorillas, desks, and bars-offer a gravity of form and sense of whimsy that bring life to the spaces they occupy. Together, the Lalannes' works create a dialogue that is at once playful, elegant and arresting, and equally suitable for traditional and contemporary environments.