Richard Fisher is in a bind, as the New York Post explains, because he bought a painting from Sotheby’s in 1991 that the artist’s foundation now says is not an authentic work. Sotheby’s has offered to pay back the original price but Fisher wants the $800k he believes the painting is worth. So he’s suing the foundation:
Richard Fisher of Malibu is suing the Petr Konchalovsky Foundation in federal court, saying that when he bought the oil painting “Still Life with Grinder” in 1991 from Sotheby’s, the organization declared it an authentic work by Konchalovsky, a Russian artist.
In 2012, Fisher decided to sell the work and told Sotheby’s in New York to auction it — but the foundation claimed it wasn’t authentic, his lawsuit alleges.
The Moscow-based foundation didn’t even examine the work, dated 1920, and instead relied on photos, Fisher says in court papers.
Sotheby’s, which had put the painting’s value at $800,000, refused to move ahead with the sale, offering instead to reimburse Fisher what he paid for it — $5,922.
Russian foundation wrongfully called $800K painting fake: suit (New York Post)
