Lawrence Salander

Lawrence B. Salander (born 1949) is a former New York City art dealer and an artist. His company, the Salander-O'Reilly Galleries, was cited by the Robb Report in 2003 as the best gallery in the world.[1] By late 2007, Salander had been sued by numerous customers and business partners who claimed that Salander and his company had defrauded them.[2][3]

In November 2007, Salander filed for personal bankruptcy, listing John McEnroe among his creditors.[4] At the time, several artists represented by Salander-O'Reilly also claimed to be owed money.[5] As a result of his bankruptcy, Salander and his wife were ordered to relinquish control of their finances to a trustee.[6]

In March 2009, Salander was charged with 13 counts of first-degree grand larceny, 10 counts of second-degree grand larceny, and other charges.[7][8][9][10] After posting bail of one million dollars, Salander worked in the Phoenix Art LLC Gallery in Millbrook, New York. The Phoenix Gallery exhibited works of the Hudson River Valley,including canvases by well known artist Ralph Della-Volpe, photographer Annemiek do Gersten, and acclaimed Cuban Outsider artist Corso de Palenzuela.[11]

On March 18, 2010 Lawrence Salander pled guilty to 29 felony counts of grand larceny and was sentenced to six to eighteen years in prison. In addition the New York Times reported that Mr. Salander had recently been hospitalized with a stroke.[12][13][14]

On August 3, 2010, Mr. Salander was sentenced to 6 to 18 years in prison for his crimes.[15][16][17]

He is currently imprisoned at Rikers Island in New York City.[18]

On 6 April 2011, Leigh Morse, the former director of the Salander-O'Reilly Galleries and dealer for actor Robert De Niro, was found guilty by a New York jury of one count of scheming to defraud. On 20 July 2011, Morse was sentenced to serve weekends in prison for four months and make restitution of $1.65 million for defrauding the estates of artists.[19]

References

  1. ↑ Barron, James (October 19, 2007). "Manhattan Art Gallery Is Shut as Lawsuits Multiply". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  2. ↑ Barron, James; McGeehan, Patrick (October 29, 2007). "Big Dreams, Big Expenses: In a Lavish Town House, an Art Gallery in Trouble". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  3. ↑ The art world's Bernie Madoff, and his deceptions Retrieved October 24, 2010
  4. ↑ Barron, James (November 6, 2009). "Art Dealer Files for Bankruptcy, Delaying Suits Against Him". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  5. ↑ Barron, James (November 7, 2009). "A Gallery’s Money Crisis, and Shaken Trust". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  6. ↑ Edidin, Peter (April 19, 2008). "Setback for Art Dealer". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  7. ↑ Barron, James (March 26, 2009). "Art Dealer is Charged With Stealing $88 Million". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  8. ↑ Maull, Samuel (March 27, 2009). "NYC art gallery owner charged in $88 million theft". Associated Press. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  9. ↑ Bray, Chad (March 26, 2009). "Manhattan DA: Gallery Owner Stole $88M From Investors, Clients". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones Newswires. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  10. ↑ Boroff, Philip; Freifeld, Karen (March 26, 2009). "NYC Art Dealer Salander Accused of $88 Million Fraud". Bloomberg News. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  11. ↑ Lindsay Pollock, Philip Boroff (May 27, 2009). "Salander, Indicted in Gallery Woes, Takes Job – in Gallery" (Web). Bloomberg.com. Retrieved May 27, 2009.
  12. ↑ Art dealer pleads guilty to 120 million dollar art fraud Retrieved March 19, 2010
  13. ↑ Bankrupt Salander Pleads Guilty in New York Art Fraud retrieved March 20, 2010
  14. ↑ Bloomberg Retrieved July 15, 2010
  15. ↑ NY Times Retrieved 3 August 2010
  16. ↑ NY Daily News 3 August 2010
  17. ↑ Bloomberg Retrieved 4 August 2010
  18. ↑ O'Neill, Helen (October 24, 2007). "The art world's Bernie Madoff, and his deceptions". Associated Press. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  19. ↑ Bloomberg Retrieved 25 August 2011