CLAUDE LALANNE (1924-2019)

Claude Lalanne, one half of the celebrated husband-and-wife duo Les Lalannes, worked alongside François-Xavier Lalanne from 1956 until his death in 2008. While François-Xavier became known for his monumental animal sculptures, Claude developed a more intimate and organic approach, creating intricate works that blur the boundaries between art, nature, and adornment.

Claude’s first jewelry exhibition took place in a small gallery on the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in Paris, where she sold her first piece to gallerist Sven Boltenstern. Later that same year, she participated in Les Lalannes’ debut show at Galerie J. in 1964, which featured a whimsical and surreal collection of works, including Claude’s now-iconic gold torque necklace framing a sculpted mouth. This motif—cast from the mouths of her friends, family, and clients—became a recurring symbol throughout her career, appearing in both her sculpture and jewelry.

Claude’s mastery of electroplating defined her distinctive style. This meticulous process transforms organic material into copper by submerging flora or fauna in a copper-sulfate bath through which an electrical current passes. The result is a perfect metallic fossil of the original form—delicate, eternal, and hauntingly lifelike. Her studio was filled with such “metallic fossils,” testaments to her fascination with the natural world.

Working intuitively, Claude assembled and soldered each component by hand before galvanizing the finished piece to achieve the soft, pinkish hue characteristic of her copper works. Though she collaborated briefly with Giancarlo Montebello and produced editions for Artcurial in the 1970s, most of her jewelry was made for friends and collectors. Her small flower pins became tokens of affection among those who knew her. Claude continued to make jewelry well into her later years, her hands permanently marked by her craft.