Salander-O'Reilly Galleries to Sell Collection of Art Books

NEW YORK—Salander-O'Reilly Galleries is planning to sell its collection of 35,000 art books and catalogs in the wake of an avalanche of lawsuits and the dealer's recent bankruptcy filing, Bloomberg reports. The dealer filed for bankruptcy protection after facing legal action from a number of individuals and companies who contend that Salander pocketed proceeds of art sold on consignment, failed to deliver promised investment profits, and reneged on loans, bills, and credit-card charges. The gallery's owner, Lawrence Salander, spent more than $4 million building the book collection, and a reporter and photographer who were briefly allowed into the shuttered gallery last week saw three floors of books, stacked on custom-built shelves and in cardboard boxes. The library includes everything from books on 19th- and 20th-century art to publications focusing on architecture, furniture, tapestry, mosaics, and jewelry, according to Bil Thibodeau, a Salander-O'Reilly employee since 1999. The sale of the collection would have to be approved by the judge overseeing the bankruptcy.