The American art dealer and gallerist Mary Boone's life is filled with circumstances to be dealt with several legal issues.
After Mary went to prison a year back in February 2019, she now has another business to settle down, which is a lawsuit filed by Mary Boone Gallery's partner and a former employee, James Oliver.
James sued Mary citing she had transferred millions of gallery fortunes in her personal account on 26 February 2020. He filed a lawsuit seeking $44,325 in unpaid wages and to protect his equity share in the gallery. He holds a 10% equity share in the Mary Boone Gallery.
James had an annual salary of $3,00,000; however, he got $9,000 for over a couple of months in 2019. Similarly, the complaint trails three works, including the $10 million Brice Marden painting, which was sold to Gagosian Gallery.
Over sixteen paintings worth $5 million is said to be in Mary's apartment.
Some portraits of Mary Boone Gallery (©: GlamourBiz)
As per his attorney, James tried to settle the dispute amicably before filing the lawsuit. He asked 10 percent of profits with Mary but got rejected. The complaint suggests that Mary mentioned;
"Boone flippantly responded that ‘it’s mine and I am going to need it when I get out of prison."
The lawsuit also shows James' double character. James was the same person who defended Mary when she got sentenced to prison in February 2019, praising her that 'she trained dozens of gallerists who have gone through the successful career.' However, he resigned from the gallery in March 2019.
Concerning the lawsuit, Mary's rep has yet to comment.
Mary Was Sentenced To Prison For 30 Months In 2019
Back in February 2019, Mary Boone was sentenced to 30 months of prison for falsifying her tax documents in 2009, 2010, and 2011. She reported the loss of $52,521 in the gallery, although it did make a profit of $3.7 million in those years. Later, she paid $3 million in restitution for taxes.
She was also charged for a $9.5 million bank transfer, an $800,000 apartment renovation, and a $19,000 shopping spree.
Reports suggested that she falsely claimed the worth of $793,003 to remodel her Manhattan house, beauty salon purchases of $24,380, $14,000 on products from Hermes, and $5,000 on Louis Vuitton items as business deductions.
Judge Alvin Hellerstein announced the verdict on 14 February 2019, confronting around 40 journalists, art professionals, and family members.
Along with the prison sentence, the jury ordered Mary of 180 hours of community service. Mary was given the ultimatum until 15 May in 2019 to surrender.
While she heard the verdict, she mentioned that she is going to be the Martha Stewart of the art world, and she would do it with the same grace, humility, humor, and intelligence. Currently, she serves a sentence at the women's Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Connecticut.
How Much Is Mary Boone's Net Worth?
Mary had a share of around 70 percent in her gallery, Mary Boone Gallery, which had around $3.7 million profit from her gallery. Concerning the fact about her 70 percent share in the gallery, the art dealer is believed to have drawn millions of net worth on her side.
Mary Boone at her gallery (©: artsy.net)
As of now, Mary Boone Gallery is closed, and Mary serves her 30 months prison.
Mary started her career from Bykert Gallery in 1975, and after a couple of years, she opened her gallery named Mary Boone Gallery in SoHo in 1977. The gallery successfully launched for over four decades before it was closed in 2019.