LONDON.- The most colourful selection of Lalique vases ever assembled for auction is to be sold at Bonhams The Colours of René Lalique and Design from 1860 Sale in London on 12 June 2012.

René Lalique (1860-1945) was a celebrated figure of the Art Deco movement. His work was highly fashionable during his lifetime and is sought after today by private collectors and by interior designers.

All the major designs which made Lalique famous are featured in the sale, in a stunning array of different colours.

The natural world was a constant source of inspiration for Lalique and one of his most elaborate designs, Serpent (snake), is represented in amber (£30,000-35,000) and in clear glass heightened by staining (£20,000-25,000) while the elegant and flowing Poissons (fish) appears in green (£24,000-28,000) and red (£24,000-26,000). There are green, deep amber and electric blue versions of Perrruches (budgerigars) ranging from £18,000 - 25,000 and an electric blue Sauterelles (grasshoppers) at £18,000-22,000. On a human theme, a graceful, opalescent Bacchantes (priestesses of Bacchus) vase is expected to attract bids of between £25,000-30,000.

The most unusual vase in the sale is also the rarest. The Frise aigles (eagles’ frieze) is known in only two other versions; one in black glass with no design to the body, and a green glass version in the collection of Lailique’s granddaughter, Marie-Claude. The early, 1911, cameo technique vase overlaid with red and black enamel and polished clear glass version offered by Bonhams is unrecorded. The vase is estimated at £5,000-7,000.