Claude Lalanne Ginkgo dining suites leads sale

May 6, 2025 admin Baron Diego von Buch, Christie's, Claude Lalanne, Fernand Léger

The first complete set of the French designer and sculptor Claude Lalanne’s celebrated ‘Ginkgo’ dining suite in a rare green-painted finish to come to the market leads Christie’s The Collection of Baron Diego von Buch at auction in London on June 5, 2025.

Part of the ‘Ginkgo' dining suite by Claude Lalanne — Part of the ‘Ginkgo’ dining suite by Claude Lalanne (1925-2019), 2000, painted cast aluminium. (Complete suite estimates: dining table £200,000-300,000; set of 6 chairs £200,000-300,000; set of 4 armchairs £200,000-300,000; bench £100,000-150,000. Shot on location in the courtyard of Ossip Zadkine and Hélène and Claude Garache’s former studios, Claude Garache painted the courtyard’s wall.) CHRISTIE’S IMAGES LTD

The sought-after dining set provides an important opportunity for collectors to acquire one of Lalanne’s most defining motifs in a distinctive variation which Claude only employed on a few of her works. She created works of remarkable originality, drawing inspiration from the organic elements commonly found in the world around her – predominantly the flora and fauna surrounding her picturesque home in Ury, France.

In Asian art, the distinctive fan-shaped Ginkgo leaves are emblems of peace, hope and longevity. In Claude’s work, oversized ginkgo leaves lend a touch of enchantment, drawing from the aesthetics of Art Nouveau and Surrealism, evoking the nostalgic charm of fairy tales and childhood dreams.

Fernando Botero 'Reclining Woman with Fruit' — Fernando Botero ‘Reclining Woman with Fruit’. CHRISTIE’S IMAGES LTD

Spanning the 11th to the 21st centuries, the collection presents Baron’s eclectic collecting passions comprising approximately 100 lots from his houses in Cap Ferrat, Milan, St Moritz and London. The sale features Modern and Contemporary art, design and prints, furniture, decorative arts and silver. Estimates range from £300 to £800,000. The pre-sale exhibition in London runs from 29 May to 4 June, with all welcome.

Fernand Léger 'Composition au damier (Composition/aune et noir)' — Fernand Léger ‘Composition au damier (Composition/aune et noir)’. 1929 oil on canvas Estimate: £600,000-800,000. CHRISTIE’S IMAGES LTD

Elsewhere in the sale Modern and Contemporary art is led by Fernand Léger’s striking Composition au damier (Composition jaune et noir), 1929 which hung as a focal point in the Baron’s Milan home, along with works by Anish Kapoor, Christo and Max Ernst. Sculpture was a great passion and the sale includes important works by Fernando Botero, Jean-Michel Folon and Barry Flanagan. As well as the group of exquisite works by Les Lalanne, from his Cap Ferrat home, the collection of Modern Design includes works by Lino Tagliapietra, Ron Arad and Marc Fish.

Baron von Buch (1941-2023) had a long and distinguished career in global finance, having trained as an engineer at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich and later earning an MBA from Harvard.