The painter known as the “Art Bastard” hit the art establishment with a US$100 million proposed class action Tuesday, February 6, accusing The Met and four other New York City museums of conspiring to artificially raise prices for some galleries’ work and restricting access to the market, reported Bloomberg.
Robert Cenedella, known as the “Art Bastard” said private collectors, galleries and auction houses play a large role in determining which works end up in museum collections, creating a system that drives up prices for a small group of select artists while shutting out others who “do not carry the imprimatur or financial cache of the contemporary artists within the closed system.”
“The system today—put in place by galleries, auction houses, and art critiques—has nothing to do with talent, development of skill, or maturation of the art world,” said Cenedella, a teacher at the Art Students League of New York who is known for satirical works that have included a painting of Santa Claus on a crucifix.
Cenedella sued the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and the New Museum of Contemporary Art, calling the group a “corporate museum cartel” that manipulates the market for its own benefit.
Full Content: Bloomberg
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
FTC to Approve Exxon’s $64 Billion Deal with Pioneer Resources, Excludes
May 1, 2024 by
CPI
UK Competition Watchdog Raises Alarm Over Nvidia’s ARM Takeover
May 1, 2024 by
CPI
Sen. Klobuchar Urges Regulators to Probe Collusion in Health Care Pricing
May 1, 2024 by
CPI
Multiple States Join Tennessee’s Antitrust Lawsuit Against NCAA Over NIL Rules
May 1, 2024 by
CPI
NY AG Joins Suit Challenging NCAA’s Restrictions on Student Athlete NIL Rights
May 1, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Economics of Criminal Antitrust
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Navigating Economic Expert Work in Criminal Antitrust Litigation
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
The Increased Importance of Economics in Cartel Cases
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
A Law and Economics Analysis of the Antitrust Treatment of Physician Collective Price Agreements
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Information Exchange In Criminal Antitrust Cases: How Economic Testimony Can Tip The Scales
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI