An internal dispute at the Cy Twombly Foundation is spilling out into the media as court papers were filed this week by the foundation’s head against two advisors, including the noted art tax attorney Ralph Lerner:
The suit states that Mr. Lerner and Thomas H. Saliba, the director accused of taking the fees, worked together in 2012 to have Twombly’s artwork in the trust appraised at a sharply inflated value of more than $1 billion. The two men administer the trust, which is registered in New York, and a higher valuation would pad the commissions they receive by law. […]
In February Mr. Lerner filed a lawsuit in the same Delaware court asking a judge to intervene in the foundation’s dispute, saying that it had become deadlocked. The complaint asked that Twombly’s son, Alessandro, be asked to join the board to break the deadlock. The suit filed on Wednesday states that Mr. Lerner’s request to the court was a ploy to outmaneuver Mr. Del Roscio and Ms. Sylvester.
Turmoil at Twombly Foundation (ArtsBeat/NYTimes)
