Lalanne at Artcurial: Capricorne III estimated at up to 1.5 M€

On 25 November 2026, Artcurial will offer in Paris a group of twenty works by François-Xavier and Claude Lalanne, led by Capricorne III, estimated at 1 to 1.5 million euros. Around this bronze, the Art Déco / Design sale will explore the animal in the decorative arts, from Diego Giacometti to Shiro Kuramata.

Capricorne III: 1 to 1.5 million euros

Dated 2007, Capricorne III is a bronze with a bronzed brown patina measuring 69 x 127 x 33 cm, numbered 4 of 8 and cast by Bocquel. It comes from a private French collection. According to Artcurial, a similar example once stood before the fireplace in the Lalannes’ living room at Ury. A synthesis of Capricorne I and II, the animal here turns its head towards the viewer, and its long body can serve as a bench or a fire screen.

The estimate of 1 to 1.5 million euros is the range in which the auction house expects the hammer price; the buyer’s premium will be added, and the final price will only be known after the sale.

A secret pike and a flock of sheep

The second highlight of the bestiary, the 1973 Brochet is in black-patinated repoussé copper, 98 cm long and numbered 13 of 50. Moving the fin opens a flap revealing three sycamore maple drawers. Artcurial sees in it the influence of the Louvre’s Egyptian antiquities and of 18th-century secret furniture. It is estimated at 180,000 to 220,000 euros.

The Grand troupeau de moutons rug, in tufted wool, dates from 1997 and measures 368 x 304 cm. Only around thirty examples of this large model were produced, according to the lot notes. It is estimated at 80,000 to 120,000 euros.

Twenty Lalanne lots, many published by Artcurial

The first twenty lots in the catalogue include several pieces published by Artcurial: François-Xavier Lalanne’s Grand Échassier lamp, circa 1990, estimated at 80,000 to 120,000 euros, two Pigeon lamps (20,000 to 35,000 euros depending on the example) and the Carpe d’or, in gold-leafed resin, estimated at 40,000 to 60,000 euros. Claude Lalanne’s jewellery, necklaces, brooches and ear clips in gilt bronze or vermeil, opens the sale with estimates from 600 euros. Her sculpture Madame Butterfly, dated 2019, is expected to fetch 20,000 to 30,000 euros.

Diego Giacometti’s cats for the Maeghts

Two examples of Diego Giacometti’s Chat maître d’hôtel, a model created circa 1967, will be offered, each estimated at 100,000 to 150,000 euros. This 29.6 cm bronze was made for Marguerite and Aimé Maeght: as Adrien Maeght recalls in Artcurial’s account, the standing cat held a tray on which his mother placed seed for her canaries. Together with the Autruche, it is one of Diego Giacometti’s two best-known sculptures.

Kuramata, Perriand, Bugatti: 188 lots in all

Shiro Kuramata’s Miss Blanche chair, with roses set in acrylic, carries the sale’s second-highest estimate: 180,000 to 250,000 euros. This 1991 example was bought that year from the Galerie Yves Gastou and has remained in the same collection ever since. Charlotte Perriand features with furniture that has stayed in the family of the original clients and a double-sided Mexique bookcase from 1952, estimated at 100,000 to 150,000 euros. Then come a group by Carlo Bugatti never seen on the market, from a private Swiss collection, and ceramics by Georges Jouve. Collectible design already had its stars in Paris in October, as shown by the Design Miami Paris 2026 prize list (in French).

On view in Paris from 20 to 24 November

The lots will be on view at 7 rond-point des Champs-Élysées from 20 to 24 November: 2 pm to 6 pm on the 20th and 22nd, 11 am to 6 pm on the 21st, 23rd and 24th. On 25 November, the day of the sale, viewing will be by appointment. This autumn Artcurial has already held the sale of Saint-Exupéry’s portrait of Mermoz (in French).

Information checked on 12 November 2026. Sources: Artcurial’s presentation of the sale, Art Déco / Design sale catalogue, Artcurial, lot 14 page, Capricorne III.