Role Art dealer Religion Judaism Parents Daniel Wildenstein | Spouse(s) Kristina Hansson Siblings Alec N. Wildenstein Name Guy Wildenstein | |
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Occupation Art dealer, racehorse owner/breeder Children David, Vanessa, Olivia, Samantha Relatives Alec Wildenstein (brother) Grandparents Georges Wildenstein, Jane Wildenstein Similar People Daniel Wildenstein, Alec N Wildenstein, Jocelyn Wildenstein | ||
Le proces du marchand d art guy wildenstein s est ouvert
Guy Wildenstein (born December 19, 1945) is a French businessman, art dealer and racehorse owner and breeder.
Contents
- Le proces du marchand d art guy wildenstein s est ouvert
- Art empire heir in Paris court on tax charges
- Early life
- Career
- Criticism
- References
Art empire heir in Paris court on tax charges
Early life
Born in New York City, Guy Wildenstein is the son of Daniel Wildenstein, an art dealer, race horse owner and breeder in France. His family had to flee France following the German occupation during World War II and make their way to the United States where Guy was born. He is a member of the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad.
Career
After his father's death in 2001, Guy Wildenstein assumed managing control of the art business, leaving his brother Alec to concentrate mainly on the horse racing and breeding operations. Alec died in 2008 leaving Guy in charge of both businesses. The size of his share of the family fortune and trusts, estimated from $5 billion to $10 billion, was disputed by his stepmother, Silvia Wildenstein, in 2009.
Among Wildenstein's art businesses is the Wildenstein & Company art gallery at 19 East 64th St.
Criticism
The BBC programme Fake or Fortune? criticized Guy Wildenstein in June 2011, after the Wildenstein Institute controversially refused to allow the painting Bords de la Seine à Argenteuil into the catalogue raisonné, despite the programme submitting conclusive documentary evidence to prove its authenticity. The programme's presenter Philip Mould called for the Wildenstein Institute to be replaced by a committee of scholars for the purpose of adjudicating whether a painting is an original Monet or not.
In July 2011, French authorities charged Guy Wildenstein with the concealment of artworks reported as missing or stolen. During their investigation, law enforcement officials confiscated 30 pieces of art from the Wildenstein Institute's vault. Among these, at least 20 works—comprising sculptures by Rembrandt Bugatti, sketches by Edgar Degas, and a pastel by Eugène Delacroix—were alleged to have originally belonged to Joseph Reinach's collection.Daniel Wildenstein had acted as executor of the estate of Reinach's daughter in 1972 and had been charged with responsibility for distributing the collection, which was held at the Wildenstein Institute, among the heirs.