.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
La Grenouille Fontaine exemplifies with rare clarity the art of metaphorical displacement that lies at the heart of the work of François-Xavier Lalanne. An amphibious creature, naturally associated with waterways, the frog here becomes their very source: transformed into a fountain, it diverts the object’s primary function into a poetic, almost surreal ritual.
For the Lalanne, the animal form is always a catalyst for invention. The artist himself noted that 'the animal world offers the richest and most varied forms on the planet'. From this inexhaustible repertoire, Lalanne drew the material to transform familiar creatures into fantastical utilitarian sculptures, dissolving any clear distinction between object and work of art.
Imperturbable and hieratic in appearance, these animal figures evoke an ancient, almost mythological imagination, shaped in part by the years Lalanne spent as a night guard at the Louvre. Yet this stillness is deceptive: as one approaches, the subtle mechanisms of the work are revealed. The viewer is invited to interact with the sculpture, to make it their own. From the frog’s mouth, water flows, fully disclosing the function concealed within the form.
Throughout his career, François-Xavier Lalanne repeatedly explored the motif of the batrachian, creating frogs as armchairs and as fountains alike. Such works appear in emblematic settings, from Peter Marino’s private garden, surrounded by lotus flowers, to the gardens of the Château de Chenonceau.
Installed within the park, La Grenouille Fontaine entered into a subtle dialogue with the other outdoor sculptures punctuating the landscape. Scattered throughout the greenery, these works formed a carefully paced parcours in which forms, scales and materials responded to one another, transforming the garden into a space of movement and discovery. The presence of water — central to the fountain — reinforced this silent conversation between the works and their environment, animating the sculpture and anchoring it fully within its setting.
Within this open-air ensemble, La Grenouille Fontaine was not conceived as an isolated work, but as a point of passage — a moment of pause within a broader sculptural conversation. It perfectly embodies Lalanne’s ability to unite function, poetry and vision in an œuvre in which, as Pierre d’Elme observed, 'the oneiric function takes precedence over all others' (P. d'Elme, "Histoire des Lalannes" in Cimaise, January 1970, p. 68).
For the Lalanne, the animal form is always a catalyst for invention. The artist himself noted that 'the animal world offers the richest and most varied forms on the planet'. From this inexhaustible repertoire, Lalanne drew the material to transform familiar creatures into fantastical utilitarian sculptures, dissolving any clear distinction between object and work of art.
Imperturbable and hieratic in appearance, these animal figures evoke an ancient, almost mythological imagination, shaped in part by the years Lalanne spent as a night guard at the Louvre. Yet this stillness is deceptive: as one approaches, the subtle mechanisms of the work are revealed. The viewer is invited to interact with the sculpture, to make it their own. From the frog’s mouth, water flows, fully disclosing the function concealed within the form.
Throughout his career, François-Xavier Lalanne repeatedly explored the motif of the batrachian, creating frogs as armchairs and as fountains alike. Such works appear in emblematic settings, from Peter Marino’s private garden, surrounded by lotus flowers, to the gardens of the Château de Chenonceau.
Installed within the park, La Grenouille Fontaine entered into a subtle dialogue with the other outdoor sculptures punctuating the landscape. Scattered throughout the greenery, these works formed a carefully paced parcours in which forms, scales and materials responded to one another, transforming the garden into a space of movement and discovery. The presence of water — central to the fountain — reinforced this silent conversation between the works and their environment, animating the sculpture and anchoring it fully within its setting.
Within this open-air ensemble, La Grenouille Fontaine was not conceived as an isolated work, but as a point of passage — a moment of pause within a broader sculptural conversation. It perfectly embodies Lalanne’s ability to unite function, poetry and vision in an œuvre in which, as Pierre d’Elme observed, 'the oneiric function takes precedence over all others' (P. d'Elme, "Histoire des Lalannes" in Cimaise, January 1970, p. 68).