art dealer

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Ex-Art Dealer Gets 7 Years in Prison for $86M Scheme

Inigo Philbrick defrauded buyers, fled to South Pacific when 'house of cards' crumbled: prosecutor

(Newser) - A former London and Miami art dealer who pleaded guilty to defrauding art buyers and others of more than $86 million was sentenced Monday to seven years in prison. Inigo Philbrick, 34, a US citizen who previously lived in London, was sentenced in Manhattan federal court by Judge Sidney H....

SCOTUS Weighs In on the Guelph Treasure

Justices side with Germany

(Newser) - The Supreme Court on Wednesday sided with Germany in a dispute involving the heirs of Jewish art dealers and the 1935 sale of a collection of medieval Christian artwork called the Guelph Treasure. The collection—called the Welfenschatz in German and dating to the Holy Roman Empire, per Politico —...

Art Dealer Finds Treasure Amid 'a Bunch of Junk'

Willem de Kooning paintings turn up in New Jersey

(Newser) - A New York City art dealer who bought the contents of a New Jersey storage locker filled with paintings for $15,000 says he got more than he bargained for, the AP reports. He found half a dozen paintings he believes were done by artist Willem de Kooning, whose works...

He Fled Germany in 1933. Now His Heirs Want His Paintings

Alfred Flechtheim's heirs claim 8 paintings were sold under duress after 1933

(Newser) - Renowned German art dealer Alfred Flechtheim had been named part of the "Jewish world conspiracy" in the Nazi press even before 1933, so when Adolf Hitler came to power, he chose to flee, and died 4 years later in London, reports Courthouse News . His art collection remained in Berlin...

Jewish Heirs Sue Germany for Art Trove Sold to Nazis

US filing says pressure led to unfair sale of Welfenschatz in 1935

(Newser) - In 1935, not long after Adolf Hitler rose to power, Jewish art dealers sold a major collection of medieval treasure to the state of Prussia in Germany. The collection of gold and jewels known as the Welfenschatz contains pieces that date back some 800 years; it's considered Germany's...

Hoarder of Nazi-Seized Art Tracked Down

Germany under pressure over $1.3B trove

(Newser) - The reclusive German who sat on a $1.3 billion stash of Nazi-seized art for decades has been tracked down by reporters—but Cornelius Gurlitt isn't talking. "Approval that comes from the wrong side is the worst thing that could happen," the 79-year-old son of a leading...

Art Dealer Admits Her Role in 15-Year Scam

Sold Pollocks, Rothkos, Motherwells ... painted by guy in Queens

(Newser) - An art dealer scored some $33 million selling works supposedly by 20th-century greats like Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko—but yesterday she admitted they weren't real, the Wall Street Journal reports. In fact, they were all painted by a Chinese immigrant living in Queens; he hasn't been named...

Celeb Art Swindler Sentenced
 Celeb Art Swindler Sentenced 
Aug 4, 2010 3:05 AM CDT

Celeb Art Swindler Sentenced

Lawrence Salandar to serve 6-18 years

(Newser) - An art dealer who scammed clients including Robert De Niro and John McEnroe received the maximum sentence yesterday despite his pleas for leniency. Lawrence Salandar, once one of New York's most prominent art dealers, will serve between 6 and 18 years in prison, the New York Daily News reports. He...

'Painter of Light' Busted on DUI Suspicion

Bankrupt Thomas Kinkade impaired but 'very polite': cops

(Newser) - "Painter of Light" Thomas Kinkade was arrested Friday on suspicion of DUI after being pulled over near his California home. Kinkade is having a rough month, Scripps Howard notes—his company has filed for bankruptcy in the wake of a multimillion-dollar federal fraud claim against him. "Tom is...

NY Art Dealer Cops to Scamming De Niro, McEnroe

Salander pleads guilty to $120m ripoff

(Newser) - Disgraced New York art dealer Lawrence Salandar pleaded guilty yesterday to ripping off customers and investors to the tune of $120 million. Salander sold paintings that didn't belong to him and the same paintings to multiple buyers. Salander, who filed for bankruptcy in 2008, will serve between 6 and 18...

Color Christie's Blue Over Weak Modern Sale

Picasso, Mondrian flop at sparsely attended auction

(Newser) - A New York art dealer at the Christie's auction last night decreed "the recession is ending," but apparently not soon enough to move 13 of 41 modern and impressionist art works on offer, leaving the auction house millions of dollars short of pre-sale estimates. Major works by Picasso...

Da Vinci Fingerprint IDs Lost Painting

15th-century portrait hailed as most important Da Vinci find in a century

(Newser) - A painting bought for $19,000 by a Canadian dealer two years ago has been valued at $150 million after it was determined to be a work by Leonardo Da Vinci. Carbon dating and infrared techniques convinced experts that the portrait on vellum was a genuine Da Vinci. The final...

Kinkade's Art Firm Loses Court Battle

'Painter of light' must pay two 'duped' gallery owners $2.1M

(Newser) - Hugely popular painter Thomas Kinkade claims God is his art agent, but a federal appeals court has ruled against his company for putting art gallery owners through financial hell, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The plaintiffs accused Kinkade and his firm of exploiting their Christian faith to lure them into...

NYC Art Dealer Charged With $88M Fraud

(Newser) - A New York art dealer was charged today with stealing $88 million in investments and artwork in what may be an art-world Ponzi scheme, the Times reports. Investors and collectors say they entrusted Lawrence Salander with funds or artwork after the dealer promised hefty returns. In many cases, they were...

14 Stories