A Fight Over Money, Loyalty and Who Gets Credit for an Artist’s Rise

THE NEW YORK TIMES
By Graham Bowley
Derek Fordjour in his studio.
Six years ago, when Derek Fordjour was a little-known art student at Hunter College, before Michael Ovitz and BeyoncĂ© began collecting his work, before his paintings came to sell for more than $100,000, the fledgling artist struck a deal with a New York gallery. He agreed, according to a lawsuit now being pursued in New York Supreme Court, to produce 20 works for $20,000. The Robert Blumenthal Gallery is suing him now, saying he still owes the gallery seven of those pieces, and — as ample evidence of the surging popularity of Mr. Fordjour’s art — says it will accept no less than $1.45 million in their stead. [More]
Derek Fordjour Three Bend Deep 2019 Acrylic, charcoal, oil pastel and foil on newspaper mounted on canvas 63 x 103 inches