A unique gilt-bronze armchair by French designer Claude Lalanne sold for $1,079,500 in December 2025 after arriving through the auction house’s consignment portal.
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armchair → sell → portal
The chair features a frame wrapped in vines and monkeys cast in patinated bronze, paired with a seat made from ostrich leather.
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chair → feature → leather
According to Sotheby’s, the armchair was made in 1998 and numbered one from an edition of one.
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armchair → accord → one
The piece reached Sotheby’s through its consignment portal before selling for $1,079,500 in December 2025.
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piece → reach → December
The armchair was sold at a time when demand for Lalanne’s works was particularly strong.
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demand → sell → works
The same Sotheby’s auction was led by another piece that set a record for the highest price paid for a design object at auction.
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that → lead → auction
How did Sotheby’s sell Claude Lalanne’s armchair for $1.079 million
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Sotheby → sell → million
The gilt-bronze armchair by Claude Lalanne sold for $1,079,500 at Sotheby’s in December 2025.
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armchair → sell → December
Its distinctive design combines a chair frame wrapped in vines and monkeys cast in patinated bronze with a seat made from ostrich leather.
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design → combine → leather
The piece reached the auction house through its consignment portal, showing how an online submission can lead to the sale of a significant design object.
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submission → reach → object
Margaret Wood, a specialist in Sotheby’s Design Department, described the chair as the earliest of Lalanne’s ‘Singerie’ armchairs to appear at auction.
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Wood → describe → auction
Its sale placed the unique design among the notable works to emerge through Sotheby’s consignment process.
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sale → place → process
PC: Sotheby’s
What makes Lalanne’s Singerie armchair different from other designs
The armchair’s design centres on its bronze vines and monkeys, which wrap around the underlying chair form.
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which → make → form
Its seat is made from ostrich leather, adding another distinctive material to the piece.
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seat → make → piece
According to Margaret Wood, each Lalanne work is unique in some way.
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work → accord → way
She explained that these differences range from the positioning of the monkeys to the way the vines cast in gold-patinated bronze swirl around the chair.
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vines → explain → chair
Its arrival at auction was also notable because it was the earliest of Lalanne’s ‘Singerie’ armchairs ever to appear at auction.
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it → appear → auction
The armchair arrived at Sotheby’s as a submission through the auction house’s consignment portal.
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armchair → arrive → portal
Rather than being described as a centuries-old object, it represented a more recent work of design, produced in 1998.
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it → describe → 1998
The portal provided the route through which the chair reached the auction house before being offered for sale.
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chair → provide → sale
Its subsequent appearance at auction resulted in a sale of $1,079,500 in December 2025.
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appearance → result → December
The submission also brought a unique example of Claude Lalanne’s ‘Singerie’ armchairs to the market.
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submission → bring → market
Margaret Wood, a specialist in Sotheby’s Design Department, identified it as the earliest example from the series to come to auction.
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Wood → identify → auction
The armchair draws attention for its distinctive monkey and vine details
The armchair came to auction at a time when demand for the works of Claude Lalanne and demand for the Lalannes had rarely been higher, according to Sotheby’s.
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demand → draw → Sotheby
The sale was led by another work that set a record for any design object sold at auction.
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that → lead → auction
The ‘Singerie’ armchair also achieved $1,079,500, drawing attention to the distinctive details of Lalanne’s designs.
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armchair → achieve → designs
Margaret Wood highlighted the variations in the positioning of the monkeys and the way the bronze vines swirl around the chair.
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vines → highlight → chair
The Aporia
