Frederick Iseman, 71, the nephew of the late American abstract painter Helen Frankenthaler, has filed a lawsuit against the foundation named after the artist and its directors for tarnishing the late painter's legacy, and for allegedly "wasting" away the funds of the foundation.
Among the accused are 71-year-old Clifford Ross, Iseman's cousin & current foundation president; 68-year-old Lise Motherwell, stepdaughter of the artist; and 87-year-old Michael Hecht, who provided the foundation with accounting services through his own companies.
A man looks at a painting Off White Square by Artis Helen Frankenthaler at the art gallery Phillips on September 30, 2020 in Southampton, New York. - Beach umbrellas are in back garages as temperatures cool, but wealthy New Yorkers are staying in the Hamptons beyond summer, fearful of the pandemic and rising crime in the city.
What the Complaints in the Frankenthaler Foundation Lawsuit Entail
The legal accusation made by Iseman was filed by the law firm "Kaplan Hecker & Fink LLP" at New York's Supreme Court last Thursday, Nov. 9, which accuses the directors of breaching their duty to put forth the best interests of the institution.
Iseman, who was also a board member for over 20 years before being ousted by his fellow members, claims that he was unrightfully relieved of his position for going against the three remaining directors and their plans to "exploit the foundation for their own individual, personal interests."
The complainant further asserted the notion that the board member trio was purposefully keeping the board size from expanding precisely for the purposes of hiding their "neglect and malfeasance."
One specific complaint targets Ross for his engagement in "pay-to-play" agreements in order to progress his own career as a multimedia artist. Iseman claims that Ross used his position as the foundation president to dole out $1.8 million dollars in grants provided the recipients write about, exhibit, or acquire Ross's works.
In the legal complaint, Iseman's party wrote, "Ross may have experienced a measure of success at some point in his career... those days have long since passed."
Against Motherwell, the complaint accused her of poorly using the foundation's resources by curating a Frankenthaler exhibition and donating the artist's artwork to a small region-based museum in Massachusetts, despite the Frankenthaler's direct wishes to concentrate the foundation's efforts on getting exhibitions at major art centers.
The complaint against Hecht was for allegedly hiring two of his own accounting firms to sort out the funds of the foundation which posed an immediate conflict of interest.
All in all, however, Iseman's biggest concern was that the directors had been planning to close the foundation since 2019, in order to "fully liquidate" the foundation's assets which include over 3,000 pieces by Frankethaler.
The complaint argues for the reinstatement of Iseman as a board member; the dismissal of Ross, Motherwell, & Hecht; and proper compensation toward the foundation for the damaging actions of the current directors.
