A long-missing business card allegedly hand-drawn by Jean-Michel Basquiat mysteriously reappeared at a Sotheby’s auction, the purported rightful owner claims in a lawsuit.
The famed street artist created the business card for Phyllis Swan and her partner, fashion designer Isaia Rankin, in the 1980s for their Lower East Side clothing store “Fertility,” Swan claims in court papers.
The card, on which Basquiat scrawled the names of Swan, Rankin and the store, was stolen and ended up in the possession of Rankin’s former employee, according to the litigation.
The employee, Robert Page, then brought it Sotheby’s for the October 2019 auction, charged Swan, who wants the auction house to return it to her.
Swan, who is seeking $500,000 damages, found out about the auction after a friend alerted her to the $40,000 listing.
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The card had been appraised for at least $75,000, Swan said.
Attorneys for Sotheby’s said that Page told them the art had been a gift from Rankin, a story the legal reps admitted they didn’t confirm, according to the court filing.
Swan’s attorney and Sotheby’s did not immediately respond to messages for comment.
Page declined to comment.
