Nelson Mandela sues former lawyer over sale of prints
The statesman says unauthorised works are being sold in his name at exorbitant prices

LONDON. Nelson Mandela is suing his former lawyer over a bitter dispute involving the sale of art prints. The revered South African statesman claims that he has been betrayed by Ismail Ayob, who represented him in the 1970s when he was imprisoned by the Apartheid regime on Robben Island. For many years Mr Ayob remained one of Mr Mandela’s closest confidants.

Until recently, it would have come as a surprise to learn that the South African statesman had turned his hand to art, but Mr Ayob encouraged Mr Mandela to agree to the production of lithographic prints based on his “artworks”. The idea was to raise funds for homeless children and AIDS victims.

Mr Mandela’s side now claims that unauthorised prints are being marketed which bear false signatures. It is argued that these sales are worth millions of dollars. Mr Mandela’s prints typically sold for over $10,000 each until last month.

Now that the case has gone to court, it seems that Mr Mandela’s role as an artist may well have led to the final legal battle in his long political career. As the 86-year-old anti-Apartheid leader explained in papers filed with the Johannesburg high court on 10 May, “having regard to my age, I want to ensure that my affairs are in order”.

The lawyer leading the case for Mr Mandela is George Bizos. He told The Art Newspaper: “Mr Mandela feels strongly about the issues and wants to protect his name, protect the public, and protect the reputation of his philanthropic organisations.” Mr Bizos says that “none” of the money due to the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund and the Nelson Mandela Foundation has yet been paid.

Activist-turned-artist

The story begins in 2001, when it was suggested to Mr Mandela that he should produce simple works of art which could be turned into lithographic prints to raise funds for charity.

The deal was arranged by Mr Mandela’s then lawyer, Mr Ayob, and papers were signed transferring intellectual property rights to Tinancier, a company controlled by Mr Ayob. Two other companies were also involved in marketing the prints.

Mr Mandela explained to the court: “Ayob has acted in a mala fide manner, leading me to believe that he would comply with my wishes and requests, while pursuing a separate and secret agenda”. He argues “the agreement is invalid because it is so vague and ambiguous as to be all but incoherent”. The former South African president says he was unaware of the legal implications of what he was signing.

Mr Mandela’s personal assistant, Zelda la Grange, commented on the nature of his earlier relationship with his lawyer. “Generally, Mr Ayob would give a short explanation to Mr Mandela about the documents for which he sought his signature. Mr Ayob would say: ‘Chief, this is about this or the other project’. Because of the trust Mr Mandela had in relation to his attorney’s integrity, he would sign documents presented to him by Mr Ayob without difficulty.”

By December 2003 Mr Mandela had become concerned that the limited-edition prints were being sold on a large scale and he therefore withdrew his endorsement, refusing to sign further examples.

Mr Ayob and his business associate, publisher Ross Calder, are now accused of handling “mechanically and photographically reproduced innumerable copies which are being sold at exorbitant prices”. So far up to Rands 40 million ($6 million) is said to be “not accounted” for.

Mr Mandela argues that the “unlawful and illegal activities” surrounding the sale of his lithographs “deceive and mislead unsuspecting members of the public to spend substantial amounts of money on artworks and merchandise in the mistaken belief that I have been involved in their creation”.

The South African statesman is therefore asking the court to rescind the contract and for Mr and Mrs Ayob to be removed from their positions in the Nelson Mandela Trust, the NRM Family Trust and the Mandela Trust. He also wants audited financial statements of the money that went into the trusts and companies that sold the prints. In addition, he wants Mr Ayob and publisher Mr Calder to halt further marketing efforts.

Rebuttal

Those accused by Mr Mandela have not yet made a formal response, but Mr Ayob dismisses the charges against him as “vague and unspecific”. He has also said that “at no stage have I benefited or done anything improper”. Mr Calder, the publisher, has promised to “defend everything in court”. He added, “They’ve told their story, but soon it will be my time”. Formal responses were expected late last month.

Meanwhile galleries marketing the prints, which were not involved in their production, are now having to consider whether to continue to sell them. The Natal-based Mark Gallery, one of seven around the world licensed to sell the prints, withdrew them from sale last month.

A similar decision was taken in London by Belgravia Gallery director Anna Hunter, who is one of the main European distributors. On 9 May the prints were still hanging in the Albemarle Street gallery, at prices of up to £12,500, but by the end of that week, Ms Hunter told us that they had been withdrawn, “until the legal situation is resolved”. Martin Bailey

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Tutored by the granddaughter of Apartheid prime minister

Mandela’s first prints in 2001 were The struggle series, a set of lithographs depicting manacled and clenched hands. These were simple line drawings. Although presumably based on Mr Mandela’s ideas, he almost certainly had professional assistance. They were followed by Impressions of Mandela, a pair of works depicting his handprints (the second print was changed slightly to make the image of the African continent appear in the centre of his palm).

In 2003-04 there were two sets of colour lithographs with scenes from the prison where he was incarcerated, each with five images: My Robben Island I and My Robben Island II. A further set of prints which also involved the work of other artists was called The unity series. It was released in January this year at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland. Mr Mandela says he had no involvement with The unity series—and its release was a major factor behind the current law case.

Print runs were supposed to be limited and Mandela’s celebrity status means that prices were high. For instance, My Robben Island I was an edition of 500 (plus 50 artist’s proofs), and until last month it was being sold by the South African publisher at £49,000, or £75,000 for proofs.

Even before the latest legal row, questions had been raised about the extent of Mr Mandela’s involvement in the art. Belgravia Gallery director Anna Hunter responds that the Robben Island lithographs were made with the help of photographs taken by a professional under Mr Mandela’s supervision. Mr Mandela then drew simple images based on, but not traced from, the photographs. He is said to have coloured each of the seven separations on tracing paper. Production of the lithographs was done under Professor Stephen Inggs at the Michaelis School of Fine Art at the University of Cape Town.

The South African publisher admits that Mr Mandela was “tutored” by Varenka Paschke, the granddaughter of Apartheid Prime Minister P.W. Botha, who ultimately released Mr Mandela from prison in 1990. An examination of the prints suggests a professional hand at work: the colouring is bold and freely applied. Most amateur artists would have done the job more neatly, by adding the colour right up to the edges of the black outlines, although this would have been less effective.

It is difficult to believe that the aged and extremely busy statesman would really have been able to master a new skill when he was well into his eighties. But in lending his name to the prints, Mr Mandela was following a long artistic tradition of relying on a studio—this began in the 14th century and is carried on today by artists such as Damien Hirst. M.B.

  
   Friday, 10 June 2005

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