New York exhibitions on rare works of René Magritte and Les Lalannes

This fall, DI Donna Galleries will be collaborating with René Magritte and Les Lalannes in New York with Ben Brown Fine Arts in London to host more than 50 paintings, works on paper and sculptures.

Opening on October 8, “Magritte and Les Lalanne: In the Garden of Thought” will be a rare painting loan with Belgian surrealists talking to the works of French sculptors François-Xavier Lalanne and Claude Lalanne.

“There has never been a show like this before,” gallerist Emmanuel Di Donna told Artnews. “With a project like this, it’s new, and it’s related, and I think it’s going to be very poetic. I think these works will be singing together.”

In addition to the shared sensitivity of all three artists (through the surreal and poetic transformation of the natural world), they were praised and represented in the 1960s by legendary gallerist Alexander Iolas.

Di Donna tells Artnews Discussions for the exhibition first began late last year, but combined them together thanks to the work of Lalanne Family, DI Donna’s long-term involvement with the iconic surreal work of Belgian artists and the willingness of significant private collectors to borrow works.

“I know where most of the Magrittes are,” he said. “It’s a phone call or a letter explaining what we’re doing, you know what the reason behind the show, and showing some of the pieces we already have and examples of them working together.”

Added: “People always need to watch beautiful shows. If they can contribute to great performances, I think people want to do that.”

Ben Brown also represented Les Lalannes for several years, knowing French couples and sculptors and observing how their market continues to expand and attract new buyers.

Di Donna is still working to get loans for other works in the coming weeks, including those hidden from the public eye. “I haven’t seen a lot of works in museums or anywhere in years,” the galleryist said. “So I’m excited to showcase some of Magritte’s works that are really special and talk to those great Lalannes.”

Confirmed highlights of the exhibition include Magritte’s oil paintings L’Ami Intime (1958), sold at Christie’s in London last March for £33.66 million; François-Xavier Lalanne’s Hippotame I (1968/1998), a 9-foot blue 9-foot bathtub made of molded polyester resin in the shape of a life-sized hippo; and François-Xavier Lalanne’s “Sauterelle” bar (1970) Made of porcelain, polished brass and steel, its shape has only two versions.

“Its scale just makes it look like an UFO,” Di Donna mentioned “Sauterelle” bar. “This is an amazing creative object.”

“The first gig I did when I opened my gallery in 2011 was a performance by Magritte,” said Di Donna. L’Empire des Lumières (1954), the artist sold a new auction record for $121 million in Christie’s 20th-century evening sale last November.

Even in a slow art market, the interest of these three artists in the work of all three remains strong. In May, Magritte L’Empire des Lumières (1959) retained a $34.9 million sale and received a fee for Christies’s single sale Leonard and Louise Riggio’s single sale: the collected works. Last month, Francois-Xavier Lalanne’s life-size bronze medal The Great Rhino II (2003) sold for the buyer’s premium at $16.422 million, exceeding its overestimate of $5 million. It was the number one at Sotheby’s important Design Day auction in New York and the second highest result for artists at the auction.

Di Donna also believes that Les Lalannes’ market still has room for growth due to the couple’s unique style and an increasing number of buyers. “No one can compete in quality and imagery,” he said. “When you see those giant hippos or giant gorillas or like small hippos. Choupette Or, I mean, all of these works are very poetic, very beautiful, very charming. And they are charming. ”

The release notes that the illustration catalogue of “Magritte and Les Lalanne: In Mind’s Garden” will also contain texts from surreal scholars, focusing on Magritte and Les Lalanne.

Editor’s note, July 30, 2025: Previous versions of this article say that DI Donna Galleries and Ben Brown Fine Arts both represent Les Lalanne. Only Ben Brown’s Art represents French sculptors.