{"id":944863,"date":"2026-07-19T06:04:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T06:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/944863\/"},"modified":"2026-07-19T06:04:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T06:04:00","slug":"artists-sue-bowery-art-gallery-the-hole-alleging-it-sold-50k-of-their-work-and-didnt-pay-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/944863\/","title":{"rendered":"Artists sue Bowery art gallery The Hole, alleging it sold $50K of their work and didn\u2019t pay them"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two artists have sued<\/a> Bowery<\/a>-based art gallery The Hole<\/a> over accusations that the showroom allegedly deprived them of nearly $50,000 in sales from their artwork.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Contemporary artists Daniel Um<\/a> and Nastaran Shahbazi <\/a>said they delivered multiple paintings and other fine artworks to The Hole for display and sale on consignment between 2024 and 2026. While they were paid some of what they were owed, the pair alleges that The Hole\u2019s own books show the two are collectively short about $50,000: Um is owed $28,975, and Shahbazi is owed $21,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n

When they repeatedly asked to be paid, according to the case, Um and Shahbazi said they were told by The Hole\u2019s management that the gallery\u2019s overall business was suffering, forcing the showroom to delay payments to the pair it owed.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

That\u2019s illegal under New York law, as consignment proceeds are the artist\u2019s money only and can never become the gallery\u2019s property or be placed in its general account and used to cover operating expenses, as Um and Shahbazi allege The Hole was doing. By law, an artist\u2019s consignment payment must never be dependent on a gallery\u2019s other income.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c[The Hole] did exactly what the statute forbids,\u201d reads Um and Shahbazi\u2019s suit, filed Thursday in Manhattan Supreme Court. \u201cThey sold the artists\u2019 consigned artworks, collected the proceeds, and\u2014instead of segregating and remitting those trust funds \u2026 commingled or diverted the proceeds and used available gallery funds to pay the gallery\u2019s rent, operating expenses, other creditors, and other artists, leaving [Um and Shahbazi] unpaid for well over a year.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the artists agreed to give The Hole a small commission from the sale of their work, according to the lawsuit, they did not agree to give up anywhere near $50,000 of their earnings. The artists charged the gallery with unjust enrichment and breach of contract alongside violations of the state\u2019s Arts and Cultural Affairs Law.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Hole did not respond to amNewYork\u2019s request for comment.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

The artists\u2019 lawyer, Jeff Kinkle of art law firm Kinkle Law<\/a>, told amNewYork that the pair felt the suit \u201cspoke for itself\u201d when asked for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Um and Shahbazi\u2019s suit alleges that The Hole and its owner have repeatedly acknowledged that they owe the pair tens of thousands of dollars and promised to pay it \u2014 repeatedly assuring them that they\u2019d \u201cnever not pay\u201d the artists \u2014 but still have not.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not the first time The Hole\u2019s been accused of not paying its artists. Reporting earlier this year from<\/a> The Art Newspaper shows multiple artists accusing the gallery of not paying them as it experienced financial strife, like failing to pay rent across its three locations \u2013 two in downtown Manhattan and one in Los Angeles.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And, a Reddit thread<\/a> under r\/ContemporaryArt shows a slew of artists warning others away from working with the gallery, saying they also weren\u2019t paid when the showroom sold their work.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMyself and at least three other repped artists from the pre 2024 era were owed amounts in the six figures each,\u201d one Reddit user alleged. \u201cThey have been cooking their books for many years. Crooked bookkeeping pure and simple. Selling work and not reporting it to the artists. Finding out via Instagram pics of your work in a collector\u2019s home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Um and Shahbazi are seeking at least the nearly $50,000 they are owed, along with additional punitive damages.\n<\/p>\n