Claude Lalanne

Nature, Transformed: Claude Lalanne’s Extraordinary “Bambilobas”

Always uniting form and function with distinctively whimsical beauty, Claude Lalanne’s works find inspiration in the luscious French countryside that laid outside her doorstep. Claude created many plant-inspired works that incorporate winding tendrils and vines on a grand and magnified scale, underlining their inherently sculptural character. The present two “Bambiloba” Settees are one of such creations—an exceedingly large and out-of-scale rendition of an organic motif, glorified in a variegated gilt patinated bronze finish. This elusive form departs from other, better known organic designs made by Claude, such as the “Ginkgo” and “Williamsburg” series, adding another tremendously successful flora-inspired creation to her magical herbarium.

“Bambiloba,” a poetic and fictitious term authored by the artist, comes from an amalgamation of “Bamboo” and “Biloba,” also known as ginkgo. The botanical examination of the form leaves us pondering which physical aspects of the present “Bambilobas” derive from firsthand horticultural observation as opposed to Claude’s boundless imagination. Four tender branches reach up to support luscious leaves, with veins stretching out to create support for a seat and a backrest; tendrils extend the seating area by wrapping around where the leaves meet. Upon close inspection, the bronze surfaces consist of such detail that they look like a plant freshly grown from the ground. The hybrid design exists somewhere between reality and fantasy, in a universe where nature is reimagined and magnified to new proportions, reinforcing its creator’s boundless creativity in her approach to both craft and the natural world.

One example of the Bambiloba settee in aluminum was in the collection of the artists and offered at Sotheby’s Paris in 2019 in the Univers Lalanne sale. The present offering represents the first time that a pair of this rare model has appeared at auction, providing collectors with the unique opportunity to acquire two complementary settees that have remained together since their time of creation, suitable for both indoor and outdoor use.