Art Gallery closes, my "friend" steals from fellow artist

May 28, 2009 8:16 AM

I am an oil painter. I have a friend who is (was) a gallery owner (G). The gallery owner knew I am in touch with an esteemed oil painter (E) and arranged to have a two man show with E and another local (venerated) painter. Unbeknownst to E the G is/was in serious financial trouble. E had a gallery for a decade and had a decent reputation. Well, E's show went up and 3 paintings were sold. The other artist had 2 paintings sell. I know E trusted G largely because he felt if I was involved G is a good guy. (The "contact" type of arrangement). G's gallery has now closed and I have helped in final details as a volunteer as G has no staff. I consider G a friend..he has helped me as an artist.

I consider E an A-list artist and someone to emulate. It has been over 30 days since the end of the show. Day before yesterday E emailed me a rather terse email asking if I had contact info on G. I called G and asked if I could give E the cell number. G said "sure" (but it begs the question...was G going to just disappear without giving contact info?). Yesterday I had lunch with G. He is leaving town never to open another gallery. Suddenly he said: " I don't like E bugging me! It makes me want to not pay him! He is not a nice person!" This took me aback. I said (gingerly).."well E is just like everyone else, suffering through the recession..and he has a little kid" G says "I didn't tell him to have a kid!" hmmm. I knew at that point that appealing to his humanity was going no where and that it was clear G is rationalizing away all reasons to pay E his 50% of proceeds for work that E did (and E footed a large frame bill as well). I do not have G's address although I have a vague description of where he is going (the next state). G is a very emotional person and I know he has been under a great deal of stress. At times I felt like I was one of his last remaining friends. But now this has happened and I am shocked that he would consider ripping off/stiffing E. It is likely that G simply does not have the $ to pay. This is out and out theft and I know how much E needs the $. I am heartbroken that G is not the man I thought he was. By the way, the other man in the 2 man show did get paid...possibly because G views him as a "nice" person (and/or he was still trying to hold it together...it doesn't seem like he is trying to hold it together anymore.).

E has expressed concern to me that G is going to not pay him. I now have information that confirms that. Should I alert E that he is correct about his misgivings? I have information that E doesn't have that could be helpful to him (the vague description of his G's new location).

posted by anonymous to work & money (11 comments total)

You don't get to not pay someone because they "are not a nice person". Tell E everything. Not sure why you would even ask!
posted by polyglot at 8:21 AM on May 28

Tell E everything you know. The fact that you used to be friends with G doesn't make it okay to help him steal from someone.
posted by decathecting at 8:23 AM on May 28

So, on the one hand you're considering 'turning over' G, someone who has shown themselves to be untrustworthy, amoral, and is leaving the business you're in. On the other hand, you're in a position to help E, who is well-respected in the tight-knit community of artists within which you're trying to raise your own prestige.

Do the right thing, tell E what you know, and help yourself in the process. Why on earth would you want to be the person who is known for a) refusing to help someone in the face of injustice, and b) siding with a corrupt gallery owner over your own artists' community?
posted by amelioration at 8:36 AM on May 28 [1 favorite]

I agree with the points above, however I would also tell E to hire counsel. ALSO, this sounds like a police issue, you may want to contact the DA's office if this can't be resolved.

Unless G has declared bankruptcy and E is simply another debtor, this sounds an awful lot like fraud.

Sadly this sort of thing goes on every day in the art world. I have witnessed many-a-horror story.
posted by Ponderance at 8:38 AM on May 28

Failing to inform E facilitates G's crime. Yes, ripping someone off is a crime, and you're helping make it happen - or, alternatively, you're not doing what you can to stop it. Either way, E, who trusted you, will have ample reason not to trust you again and in all likelihood will have the emotional fuel to spread the word of your role.

Choosing not to do something doesn't let you off the hook. It's a choice. As the other Mefites are saying, make the right one.
posted by BringaYelve at 8:48 AM on May 28

You don't know for sure that G isn't going to pay E, you just have a feeling. I think a discreet phone call to E saying, look, I think you should come over here in person and not leave without a check would accomplish a lot, to wit, it would help E recover at least some of his money while not making G necessarily furious with you.
posted by mygothlaundry at 8:53 AM on May 28 [1 favorite]

Call the police, ask for the art theft division (sorry, couldn't help the obscure "Frasier" reference), although the DA may be of help. I believe it is in your best interest to facilitate a face to face meeting to help resolve this issue, whether it be a cash settlement or a payment schedule to settle the debt.
posted by torquemaniac at 9:27 AM on May 28

The Gallery owner has the money. You vouched for the gallery owner. Mention to G that E, the artist, is likely to head right to court over any payment shenanigans. And tell E to either show up in person to collect a check, taking it straight to the bank, or to send a collection letter asap. G may be a blowhard who can be bullied successfully, and should be.
posted by theora55 at 9:34 AM on May 28

I worked for a gallery that closed suddenly (in Santa Monica CA, back in the 90's). The owners (husband and wife team) were having financial problems, but it still took everyone by surprise when they closed the gallery. The artists whose work sold in that last month never got paid (I never got my last paycheck either). Here's what's nasty: the owners planned this, insofar as they stalled on paying the artists for a full month before closing. As far as I know, no lawsuits were filed, though there were some angry artists - and we are talking substantial amounts of money in the tens of thousands... I guess artists are sometimes hopeless in business dealings. One artist with whom I had become friends also blamed me because I worked there, saying I should have alerted him ahead of time - I explained that I had no forewarning myself, and that I too was shocked etc., but nonetheless, I lost that friendship. Later, I wondered myself, whether I had a duty to tell him that the owners had financial problems, even though I had no idea they'd close the gallery that suddenly and not pay anyone. Point being: this might end very badly for you, as far as your friendship with the artist E goes. Regardless of how blameworthy you are. This is a no-win situation, but you should tell E. anyhow of what you know, just couch it in terms of "I can't prove it, but it is my feeling that G is up to no good".
posted by VikingSword at 10:18 AM on May 28 [1 favorite]

Tell E everything while it's still easy/possible to find G for a lawsuit if need be. I'd flip the fuck out if someone stole my damn paintings, as I'm sure you might also.

I, too am not sure why this is a question.
posted by cmoj at 12:24 PM on May 28

Sue in small claims. Immediately.

Waiting does not help your friend.
posted by rr at 1:00 PM on May 28