In a lawsuit filed in April, Erik af Klint, the artist’s great-grandson and chair of the Hilma af Klint Foundation, claims that business contracts were entered into without the foundation’s board’s approval or his knowledge. Stated. The lawsuit accuses board members of collaborating with CEO Jessica Heglund on contracts to produce NFTs, books about af Klint, and immersive experiences that benefit the board rather than the foundation. . The lawsuit claimed that the foundation missed out on millions of dollars because they waived their licensing rights. The lawsuit also alleges that publishing profits associated with af Klint increased tenfold from an estimated $350,000 in 2018 to $3.5 million in 2021, but that revenue was managed by academic Almqvist and not the af Klint Foundation. It is claimed that the donation was made to a foundation that supports
“They are trying to profit from people’s search for inner meaning,” Erik af Klint said of the board members in an interview.
He said he hoped the court would allow him to reshuffle his board and terminate the contract overseen by the chief executive he was trying to fire. He added that he was worried about the commercialization of his relatives’ artwork and the foundation’s finances, saying, “We can manage for another year, but not much more.”
Mr. Haeglund and the board disputed the family’s claims, saying the transaction was handled correctly without the family’s involvement and that he recently donated $100,000 to the foundation. “Regarding my alleged dismissal, Erik af Klint did not have the authority to dismiss me,” Hägglund said in a statement.
Three directors resigned due to internal conflicts with their families. One of them is Almqvist, who has defended the government’s activities. Ax Son Johnson FoundationWhich has been published He has published several books on artists, which he leads as CEO.
Almqvist said the foundation’s copyright on Hilma af Klint’s work expired in 2014, and that, contrary to the lawsuit’s claims, Axun Johnson has not been able to support the artist’s foundation. He said he donated hundreds of thousands of dollars in publishing profits. Financial health remains strong.
