Artist Odili Donald Odita is suing Jack Shainman Gallery in New York City for allegedly wrongfully retaining over $1 million worth of artwork as it “failed to adequately protect and sell” his paintings. The lawsuit centers around a relatively standard gallery arrangement. An August 2016 letter of agreement stated that the gallery would pay Odita monthly stipends of $14,000, offsetting these advance payments through sales of his work. When sales generated more revenue than advances paid out, Odita would be paid the surplus at year’s end. Should there be a deficit — that is, less artwork revenue than monthly stipends paid out — the gallery would “review the monthly payments to determine what adjustments must be made,” the agreement said. After operating under these terms for eight years, in October 2024, a senior director at Jack Shainman notified the artist that his monthly stipends would be halted, citing a “large outstanding deficit,” the lawsuit states. Read the full story by val...