Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Outsider Lawsuit

Artnet reports on an "ugly court battle" in Florida between outsider artist Purvis Young and his former business manager, Martin Siskind. Young claims that Siskind "failed to account for sales or turn over profits, and alleg[es] that Siskind had even changed the locks on Young’s art warehouse and studio." In a separate action, Siskind is seeking to have Young declared incompetent and a guardian appointed to oversee his affairs, and also seeks to be declared owner of 50 percent of Young’s artwork. Young reportedly owns 1,000-2,000 paintings, which have sold for as much as $60,000 apiece.