Seattle art dealer faces more suits, complaints

By Sheila Farr
Seattle Times art critic

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Since The Seattle Times first reported on Lidtke's business problems in September, the gallery has been closed and Lidtke has been named in at least five new lawsuits. The suits, filed in King County Superior Court and U.S. District Court, claim damages ranging from $6,000 to $245,650.

In addition, the state Department of Revenue has issued a $37,838 tax warrant against the Kurt Lidtke Gallery for overdue taxes penalties. And art collectors or their heirs continue to raise new complaints, alleging they have been unable to recover artworks consigned with Lidtke.

At Lidtke's Pioneer Square gallery, paintings still hang on the wall and a note at the door says the gallery will open by appointment for an upcoming show. But how anyone could reach Lidtke to make an appointment is a mystery to the art collectors and attorneys who are trying to contact him. The gallery's voice-mailbox is full.

Lidtke could not be reached for comment.

"We've already got a default judgment against Kurt," said Seattle attorney Steven Fricke, who last month filed suit against Lidtke in U.S. District Court for $245,650 on behalf of his client, James Clark Jr. of Texas. "[Lidtke] never put in a pleading. Everything in the complaint is unchallenged, so the judge believes it's true," Fricke said.

Paintings missing

Clark, speaking by phone from Texas, said that in 1999 he consigned 23 works by esteemed American painter Mark Tobey with the Kurt Lidtke Gallery. They were among 29 Tobeys that had belonged to Clark's late mother. Lidtke sold and paid for 10 of the paintings; 13 are now missing.

Since August 2000, Lidtke has not informed Clark of sales or responded to requests to return the work, court documents say.

The missing works range from a small 1932 ink drawing, "Portrait of Richard Odlin," to "Magic Eye," a 1966 tempera painting. "Magic Eye" is one of Tobey's groundbreaking "white writing" abstractions, which Clark calls the most prized work in the collection.

"It's excruciatingly beautiful. This is a Museum of Modern Art in New York-quality picture. It could be worth upwards of $150,000," Clark said. He said Lidtke had valued it at a net $102,000, after the gallery's commission of 30 percent to 40 percent.
 
Clark's late parents were both art collectors.

"My father collected Mondrian, Leger, Brancusi, very major artists. My mother was a much more spiritual kind of person, and she adored Mark Tobey. They were very close friends," Clark said. "My parents visited Mark and his companion, Pehr, in Europe in his later years."

Mrs. Clark bought many of the Tobeys through art dealers, but 10 of them were purchased as a group, a deal she made with Tobey so the proceeds would go directly to the Bahai Faith, to which Tobey belonged.

Clark is also trying to reclaim a substantial collection of archival material — including personal letters from Tobey to his mother and rare exhibition catalogs — that he had entrusted to Lidtke.

"There's money involved here, and there's also principle involved. This meant an enormous amount to my mother. This was a dear personal friend of hers. This was work that was in her bedroom the day she died — and I deeply resent what he has done."

Clark said that last month in Seattle he stood outside the locked Kurt Lidtke Gallery and saw two of his mother's pictures hanging inside. His attorney, Fricke, said, "Now I have to go talk to the judge and see what we can do to recoup the paintings." If they find out the other pictures have already been sold, "It's a money issue," he said.

Opened in 1992

Lidtke opened his Pioneer Square gallery in 1992 and later married TV news reporter Lisa Papas, who for a time helped run the gallery, now at 408 Occidental Ave. S. For a while, Lidtke operated a second gallery on Bainbridge Island, where he and Papas lived.

Papas, who works at local Fox affiliate KCPQ-TV, told The Seattle Times she didn't know the extent of the gallery's financial problems until the couple was served with lawsuits. She filed for divorce in June. Papas' wages at KCPQ were garnisheed to pay a judgment. Another settlement was paid out of proceeds from the couple's house, which sold in August for $710,000.

Lidtke's legal problems extend beyond the lawsuits. In July, he was charged with misdemeanor domestic violence, then he violated a protection order. He was convicted last month and received a suspended sentence and $750 fine plus two years of probation. He is forbidden from contacting Papas and from using drugs or alcohol.

Tax trouble

On Oct. 5, the state Department of Revenue filed a tax warrant against Lidtke for $37,838. Mike Gowrylow, department spokesman, said he could not provide specific information on Lidtke's case. In general, a tax warrant gives the department power to seize assets.

"We can garnish wages, take cars or business assets," he said. "Sales taxes are trust funds. It's not their money. So typically if a business doesn't remit, we are eager to make sure they do."

So far, only clients who have sold paintings through the Kurt Lidtke Gallery have run into trouble, either in collecting money or getting back their works of art. But attorneys for some of the collectors suing Lidtke said they are looking at trying to recover works that Lidtke sold. Some buyers could be held liable if they knew Lidtke wasn't paying sellers or if they paid a "distressed" price.

For Clark, it's more an ethical than a legal issue: "There are a lot of collectors who don't want to own something acquired wrongfully, so I am hoping some of the people that got these pieces will [return] them."

Times staff reporters Christine Clarridge and Cheryl Phillips and researcher Miyoko Wolf contributed to this report. Sheila Farr: 206-464-2270 or sfarr@seattletimes.com