A desk by Frank Lloyd Wright will lead Sotheby's Important 20th Century Design sale on December 18 in New York with an estimate of $400,000-600,000.
The desk was designed for the SC Johnson and Son Administration Building in Racine, Washington, which was built between 1936 and 1939.
Its design mirrors that of the Lloyd Wright-designed interior and exterior of the building, which displays the streamlined, curvilinear forms that characterise much of his later output.
 The desk was produced by Lloyd Wright for the SC Johnson and Son Administration Building in Washington |
The deep red of the desk, a shade known as "Cherokee red", is identical to the exterior brickwork.
Lloyd Wright took a holistic approach to the interiors of his buildings, often creating all of the fixtures and fittings himself.
An urn designed for the Edward C Waller house in River Forest, Illinois made $772,000 at Leslie Hindman in 2011 - a record for a design by the architect.
L'Enlevement D'Europe, a sculpture by Claude Lalanne, is valued at $250,000-350,000.
 Lalanne's sculpture is based on the Cretan creation myth |
The statue, one of an edition of eight, and executed in 1990, references the myth of the rape of Europa - the story of which has inspired artists across the centuries.
Lalanne (b 1924) is best known for her work with her husband Francois-Xavier Lalanne (1927-2008), known collectively as Les Lalanne, whose work has a major international following among collectors.
Their baroque and classically realised pieces often feature surreal themes, and frequently double as writing desks or storage spaces.
In 2009, a decorative cocktail bar by Les Lalanne realised $3.5m at a sale at Sotheby's in New York and, more recently, Francois-Xavier's bronze ape sold for $413,000 in June of this year.
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Images: Sotheby's
