Russian oligarch sues Sotheby’s after overpaying for pieces
Dmitry Rybolovlev accused the auction house of lending legitimacy to an art dealer he says ‘defrauded’ him out of tens of millions of dollars
Dmitry Rybolovlev acquired Amedeo Modigliani’s Tete and Salvator Mundi, attributed to Leonardo da Vinci, with the help of a Swiss art dealer
A Russian oligarch has accused Sotheby’s of helping to cheat him out of tens of millions of dollars in an art-buying spree that included a painting attributed to Leonardo da Vinci.
Dmitry Rybolovlev, 57, who made his fortune in fertilisers, spent $2 billion between 2002 and 2014 on acquiring masterpieces by Modigliani, Gustav Klimt and René Magritte, as well as a supposed Leonardo painting that became the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction.
Rybolovlev alleges that a Swiss art dealer named Yves Bouvier posed as an adviser during 38 purchases but was actually acquiring art works for far less money and selling them on to the Russian, making a profit of $1 billion. Bouvier denies this and a case between the two men was
