Florida Collector of Asian Art Sues Ringling Museum
- July 31, 2014 14:04
A new building at the Ringling museum in Florida might open as scheduled in January 2016 without the $30 million collection meant to go inside.
In May, a Sarasota collector filed a lawsuit against The Ringling, Florida State University — it owns the museum — and the FSU Foundation, its fundraising arm. While construction has begun on the Helga Wall-Apelt Center for Asian Art, the long delay since the gift agreement in 2006 has not sat well with the benefactor.
Wall-Apelt, a 74-year old German native and former Ringling board member pledged her $30 million Asian art collection, millions of dollars in ongoing support and the remainder of her considerable estate upon her death.
At the heart of her legal action is Wall-Apelt's outrage that her 1,700-piece collection — including jades, bronzes, stone sculptures and photographs — has yet to go on public display.
“From our perspective, we have met every element of this gift agreement,” said Steven High, executive director of The Ringling.
