the husband and wife duo of claude and françois-xavier lalanne have produced a veritable menagerie of near-surreal sculptural pieces. their work celebrate the shape and forms of fauna and flora inspired themes, but simultaneously also find a place in design functionality; which places them firmly at the juncture of design art. the contrast in the duo’s work originates from claude’s fascination with intricate flora and detailed finished casting whereas françois-xavier’s sheet metal animals are like abstracted images from antiquity reborn, often containing some hidden compartment or other function. their bronze or copper creations has a certain glam-collectors-cult-following and their famous sheep is established as one of the twentieth century’s familiar icons.
