Inigo Philbrick is a dealer accused of defrauding other dealers and investors of millions of dollars. He was recently brought to trial, and his punishment was determined, bringing an end to a saga that had taken the art world by storm.
Early Life
Inigo Philbrick was born in 1987 in Redding, Connecticut to a writer mother and an art educator father. When he was three or four years old, his parents relocated to the United States. Philbrick grew up in the West Village and had a “bohemian” upbringing. Inigo studied at the prestigious Goldsmiths University in London, which specializes in art and design. It just so happened that this was also his father’s alma mater. He had a strong attachment to art, which he admired despite his lack of talent.
Inigo Philbrick Career
Following his education, Inigo Philbrick began an internship at White Cube, a contemporary art gallery in London, under fellow Goldsmith’s alum Jay Jopling in 2010. Philbrick advanced from intern to director of secondary market sales in a year. Philbrick quickly established himself as a rising expert in “fashionable contemporary artists like Rudolf Stingel, Wade Guyton, and Christopher Wool” among international collectors and investors. By 2017, Philbrick’s gallery had a revenue of around $130 million, a fortune that Philbrick did not keep to himself. Philbrick’s legal problems revolve around two allegations: wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
According to the charges, Philbrick defrauded his clients by providing them with “materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises,” as well as using false names and signatures during the contracting process. The case that sparked the floodgates was Rudolf Stingel’s “Untitled” (1956), a photorealistic painting by Pablo Picasso. In 2015, Philbrick agreed to sell the painting to financial services provider Fine Art Partners for $7.1 million as part of a deal to resell the work together at Christie’s for a rumored guaranteed price of $9 million. The following year, Philbrick sold the same work again, this time for a fifty percent stake, to Satfinance for $3.35 million, and then again to Guzzini Properties for $6 million. Guzzini then consigned the work to Christie’s, where it sold on May 15, 2019, for $6.5 million.
Controversy
Philbrick was sentenced to 84 months in prison for the $86 million fraud on Monday afternoon. “I apologize to everyone involved without reservation or restraint,” Philbrick told Manhattan federal court Judge Sidney H. Stein. His actions were described as “outrageous and inexcusable,” fueled by “the vanity of youth and early successes,” and he insisted, “My only goal is to make the people who believed in me whole.” Papers submitted prior to his sentencing paint a detailed and complicated picture of Philbrick’s life leading up to his heinous crime.
Social Media
Inigo is currently active on Instagram, where he has 1,541 followers and 994 followings with 388 posts under the moniker @inigophilbrick. His current account is only used for business. He has a separate account where he publishes images of the artwork he owns.
Inigo Philbrick Biography |
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|---|---|
| Real Name | Inigo Philbrick |
| Birth Date | 1987 |
| Age (as of 2022) | 35 Years |
| Birth Place | Redding, Connecticut, USA |
| Profession | Art Dealer |
| College | Goldsmiths, University of London |
| Qualification | Graduate |
Physical Statistics |
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| Height | in feet inches – 6’ 1” – in Centimeters – 185 cm (Approx.) |
| Weight | in Kilograms – 77 kg – in Pounds – 169 lbs |
| Hair Color | Brown |
| Eye Color | Brown |
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Family |
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| Father | Harry Philbrick |
| Mother | Jane Philbrick |
| Sister | – |
| Brother | – |
Relationship Status |
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| Marital Status | In Relation |
| Affair | Yes |
| Who is his girlfriend? | Victoria Baker Harber |
| Children | One |
Personal Life
Victoria Baker-Harber from Made in Chelsea is Inigo Philbrick’s ex-fiancee, their engagement broke due to his arrest. They had a daughter as well. They were so in love that she promised to be by his side even after he was sentenced.
Inigo Philbrick Net Worth
The current net worth of Inigo Philbrick is unknown. But, given his penchant for million-dollar agreements, we can estimate it to be in the millions of dollars. His net worth will decline, and he may be unable to continue operating his current firm.
Trivia
- Philbrick was sentenced to seven years in prison by a New York court on 24 May 2022.
- Inigo Philbrick became known for flaunting his success with private jet trips, $7K suits, $55K watches, and auction record bids.
- By 2013, he had established his own gallery in London with the help of Jopling, which would later open a second location in Miami in 2018.
