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Ann Freedman (née Fertig, born c. 1949) is an American art dealer and gallery owner. She was previously director of the now-defunct Knoedler Gallery in New York City; she resigned in 2009 after 31 years working for the gallery during a large-scale forgery scandal.

Referred to as a "leading New York gallerist" by the New York Times, she was prominently featured in the Netflix documentary Made You Look: A True Story About Fake Art by documentary filmmaker Barry Avrich. In 2011, Freedman opened her own gallery called FreedmanArt in Manhattan's Upper East Side, amid numerous lawsuits regarding her central role in the Knoedler forgery case.

Biography

Ann Louise Fertig was born circa 1949 to Hilda and Felix C. Fertig, a real-estate executive from Scarsdale, New York. She attended Green Acres Elementary School, and later graduated from Scarsdale High School. She attended university at Washington University in St. Louis as a painting major, earning a BFA in 1971.

She first got a job at the gallery of André Emmerich working as a receptionist, before starting at Knoedler as a salesperson in 1977. Freedman eventually became director and was referred to by author Anthony M. Amore as "the famous face of Knoedler".

When many works Freedman had acquired for the gallery turned out to be forgeries, Freedman was removed from her post and eventually resigned in 2009. In 2011, an entaglement with a forgery business was revealed in the press, but Freedman, denied knowledge of any forgeries. A lawsuit against Freedman filed by Italian businessman Domenico De Sole and his wife Eleanore for selling them a fake Rothko for $8.3 million was settled in 2016. In 2017, Freedman settled the tenth and last of the lawsuits of the Knoedler affair. Her defense remained that, she was unaware that the paintings - bought through her friend from an untraced source - were forged.

Freedman participated in the documentary Made You Look about the experience in 2020.

After leaving Knoedler, Freedman opened her own studio in the Upper East Side called FreedmanArt. The first show, titled "Embracing Circles: 1959–1960", featured work by Jules Olitski. She represents American painter Frank Stella.

Personal life

Freedman became engaged to Robert Lawrence Freedman, son of Herbert J. Freedman, in 1972. Their engagement was announced by The New York Times in October of that year. They married December 24, 1972.

Freedman's mother Hilda died in November 1997. Her father Felix died on April 21, 2002.

Filmography

References

1. ^ Shnayerson, Michael (April 23, 2012). "A Question of Provenance". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on August 28, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
2. ^ Moynihan, Colin (February 7, 2016). "Knoedler Gallery Director Settles Lawsuit Over Fake Rothko". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
3. ^ "Ann Fertig and Robert Freedman Marry". The New York Times. December 25, 1972. p. 11. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
4. "Ann Fertig". Scarsdale Inquirer. April 15, 1960. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
5. "Ann Louise Fertig, Robert Freedman". Scarsdale Inquirer. September 28, 1972. p. 6. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
6. ^ Anderson, Erica (November–December 2012). "Ann Freedman: The Gift of Art". Education Update. Archived from the original on October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
7. Otten, Liam (April 16, 2009). "Ann Fertig Freedman, BFA 1971". Washington University in St. Louis. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
8. ^ Tron, Gina (March 5, 2021). "Where Is Ann Freedman, Ex-Knoedler Gallery President Wrapped In $80 Million Art Scandal, Now?". Oxygen. Archived from the original on October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
9. Amore, Anthony M. (2015). The Art of the Con. St. Martin's Publishing Group. p. 59. ISBN 9781466879119.
10. "Ann Freedman, former Knoedler director, settles final lawsuit". The Art Newspaper - International art news and events. September 11, 2017. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
11. Miller, M. H. (April 25, 2016). "The Big Fake: Behind the Scenes of Knoedler Gallery's Downfall". ARTnews.com. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
12. Kinsella, Eileen (February 8, 2011). "Ann Freedman to Open Upper East Side Gallery This Spring". Art News. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
13. "Ann L. Fertig Fiancee Of Robert Freedman". The New York Times. October 8, 1972. p. 91. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
14. "Paid Notice: Deaths FERTIG, HILDA L." The New York Times. November 6, 1997. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
15. "Paid Notice: Deaths FERTIG, FELIX C." The New York Times. April 27, 2002. p. 18. Retrieved May 11, 2022.

External links

• Ann Freedman at IMDb

• American art dealers
• People from Manhattan
• Living people
• Washington University in St. Louis alumni
• Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts alumni