Bailey Lalonde is a multidisciplinary artist and curator with exhibitions across ten countries. This spring, she launches the SS26 Europe Art Tour, presenting “The Dance: Between Polarity” – a collection created together with her mother, Christi.
Weekly Minds spoke with Bailey and Christi about the story behind the collection, the cities and venues on the tour, and what drives their work beyond the canvas.
Let us start with the collection itself. “The Dance: Between Polarity”- what is the central idea behind it, and what inspired you to bring boxing and the female form into the same visual language?
The central idea is that life is a dance. We all have polarity inside of us and in the collective. Whether it’s masculine and feminine, or light and dark, or calm and stress, or love and fear. There are so many examples of polarity within the human experience. We often paint female nude figures as well as boxers. We decided to tie them together for this tour: the female figure as the icon of femininity and the boxer as the icon of masculinity – a figurative expression of the dance between polarity.
My dad was a former WBC light heavyweight world champion boxer and my mom – a professional dancer with the Beach Boys. Our family is influenced by these sports, by its excellence, resilience and endurance. In this time, in the world there is so much going on both positive and negative, but a lot of people are suffering and we strive to plant positive seeds through our creative expression. With all of these things happening, it is important to remember that life is a dance between polarity. We all have both sides of each polarity within us and the dance is finding our way into a reality we can pass down to future generations. People have the power to create the fate of humanity, and expression is a powerful tool. The DANCE is about rhythm and flow. We create our reality, and together we are limitless.
You are creating this entire collection as a duo with your mother, Christi, under LALONDE & LALONDE. How did your artistic dialogue start, and what has surprised you most about working together on shared canvases over the years?
We started painting together after my grandfather passed away. He was a legendary figure both in the world and in our hearts. When he died we were all stunned and heavily depressed. My mom had been painting for decades as a personal expression outlet while dancing professionally and later being an international interior designer. I have been exhibiting art and selling it internationally for a decade. We came together to paint, when I went back to visit them in Costa Rica to process our emotions from my grandfather passing.
Since then, over the past five years we have been creating and sharing our art around the world and it is one of the greatest joys of my life. What surprises me the most, is how limitless the capacity for expansion and joy that is possible through intergenerational creative expression. The amount of laughter, the priceless moments shared and the impact we create with our art. All of it. I am so grateful, we are so blessed to connect with the best collectors around the world who are profoundly spectacular human beings.
How did the idea for the SS26 Europe Art Tour first come to you? Was it a natural next step after your previous exhibitions, or did something specific trigger the plan?
I was at Studio 46 in Barcelona, which is a prolific art studio, where master Catalan engraver and printmaker Joan Barbara worked with legends such as Picasso, Matisse and Dali. It was an absolutely magical artist residency.
There I met artist manager Martin Sky, who is launching an app, which supports artists with administrative and career development services. We talked about our tour last spring in Europe, about art and vision in general, and decided to work together for this year’s European Art Tour.
I came to Europe initially to exhibit our art in a show in Maison L’Amerique Latine curated by Anna Sashina of Forbes France and Paris Fashion Air during Paris Fashion Week and one after with Galerie Etienne de Causans on Rue de Seine in Saint Germaine. After that, went to Barcelona with Nick Harbaugh, founder of The Retail Nomad YouTube channel and ended up doing the residency which led to Martin which led to a tour.
The tour covers seven cities: Munich, Venice, Paris, Cannes, Barcelona, Florence and London. Could you walk us through the different venues – from private openings to a Venetian Palace during the Biennale to a villa event in Cannes?
In Munich, we are exhibiting in collaboration with legendary German artist, Sabrina Lindemann, in her historic atelier in the center of the city, featuring a few other world renowned artists including Ismael Kamara and Selassie. We have previously exhibited together in Anna’s show in Paris and decided to collaborate on a show in Munich for the tour.
At Venice, we are working with Venetian artist Chiara Collizzolli, who is curating the show as Anna Ferron in the Venetian palace called Villa Vendramin. It is a private art experience with a highly curated guest list dedicated to showcase our art in the Biennale opening days.
Some shows will be in a pop-up format, hosted in gallery spaces such as the Parisian one on May 13th in Le Marais. The Cannes show will take place in a private villa during the Cannes Film Festival. Working with Paris Fashion Air, Anthony Haden-Guest and Mambu Bayoh, we will support retired champions with health and wealth struggles post career through TAKING KARE OF OUR OWN, initiated by my father. The selection of art, including a Picasso x Joan Barbara print of Guernica, Juliana Plexxo, Om Barbara, Luca Goly, Sabrina Lindemann, Rubin Landini, and a range of high profile international artists will be showcased during the show.
The Barcelona show is held in Studio 46, Florence one – in a new gallery entitled BAGASSERIA with Samuele Alfani. The London show will take place in a secret location in the city center, which will be announced shortly.
You have curated many shows for other artists. How does that experience influence the way you approach your own touring exhibition?
Yes, about 40 exhibitions over the past decade with 250+ artists from newly emerging artists to Basquiat, Warhol, Haring and now Picasso. I’ve learned a lot. Having quite a lot of experience putting these shows together makes me feel confident to pull this off semi spontaneously across Europe.
Especially, having support from Martin and isee.art, which takes a huge load off my shoulders administratively and logistically. Working with people in general, who are specialists at what they do makes a world of difference. Also, my amazing tribe of friends, family and collaborators around the world are making it possible. Team work makes the dream work.
In Venice, you are planning a mini show with Chiara inside a Venetian Palace. What makes a space like that feel right for the collection, compared to a conventional gallery?
I’ve never been to Venice before. I am over the moon about experiencing the Venice Biennale with several friends exhibiting in the fair representing their countries, including the amazing Rani Bruchstein, who I did a beautiful shoot with last month in Barcelona. Chiara is a spectacular artist whose work I curated into some shows in New York. She recommended this historic palace, and I loved the idea.
It’s an honor to be exhibited during the opening of Venice Biennale in an intimate, highly curated private showing of our art in the dreamscape of the city. Also, the super tight guest list means bringing only the most relevant participants, and I believe that an intimate experience like this is where miracles are born.
The Cannes event, CHAMPIONS X TKOO, is tied to a philanthropic initiative. You donate 5% of art sales from this collection to the Jose Sulaiman Fund to support retired boxers. What moved you to connect this tour directly to that cause?
When we launched the project in 2023 at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn, New York, that was made possible by WBC secretary Jill Diamond and with the support of WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman and Gleason’s Gym owner Bruce Silverglade. As well as our sponsor – Andrew Kimani. Without those few people’s support, the event wouldn’t have been possible.
With my dad’s boxing background, supporting retired boxers was supremely relevant for my family. The Jose Sulaiman Boxer’s Fund has the infrastructure set up and has already supported hundreds of boxers. With their support of our launch it was a natural alliance. We are honored.
After this tour finishes, what is one question about yourself as an artist that you hope to have answered?
We can do anything we set our minds and hearts to. We are limitless beings and have infinite creative power. Now I fully know that anything we dream of is possible. This human experience is about us all. Of course, we individually experience our internal reality, but it directly influences the collective reality.
As a kid, my brother Dylan and I dreamed and brainstormed endlessly about how we can change the world, so we can have kids too and leave the world better than we found it. Now, through experience we’ve learned that it all starts within.
But with that choice within we influence everything around us. Where your attention goes, energy flows and that grows as my mom always says. We choose to put our attention to the world we can confidently pass down. To answer your question, what I’ve learned is that God is behind us and when we are grateful for the miracles and blessings in our lives and to be clear vessels of love on this planet, everything is possible.
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