I was perusing my friendly neighborhood Barnes and Noble recently when I stumbled across a lone copy of Claude and Francois-Xavier Lalanne: Art. Work. Life. A full 30 minutes later, I managed to emerge from the wholly addictive (and completely beautiful) tome. I was hooked.
The husband-and-wife team are completely fascinating, creating whimsical, elegant works that are iconic and memorable — the ultimate in form meets function. The book is an in-depth biography of their art and life. Peeks into the Lalannes’ studio offer a glimpse of the couple’s creative process and works in progress while their majestic, dreamy finished pieces are shown in both pristine galleries and wild, overgrown gardens.
And then there’s the matter of their hammered brass rhino-cum-desk, which probably merits an entire post of it’s own. Holy awesome hammered brass rhino desk goodness…
(Life magazine image via the Selvedge Yard.)
You need this book. Trust me.
