Artist claims burst water pipe ruined $25M in paintings — and insurance company is only offering $9K
A Mexican artist whose Meatpacking District gallery was flooded by a burst water pipe claimed his insurance company is only shelling out a measly $9,000 for paintings worth $25 million, according to a lawsuit.
Painter and sculptor Enrique Cabrera claims his insurance agent had promised the artworks — four paintings of skulls with brightly colored backgrounds called “Palmarius Colors” — were covered by a $7 million insurance policy, he said in court papers.
But after the April leak in the floors above Cabrera’s West 13th Street gallery sent “tens of thousands of gallons of water” into the space, the artist contends his insurance agent, Kevin Luss, revealed the policy he’d sold Cabrera didn’t cover the damage.
“Palmarius Colors,” which Cabrera created during the pandemic with fellow artist Domingo Zapata, had been exhibited in 28 countries and was the main draw at the gallery, Cabrera said in court papers.
Cabrera, who lives in New York, is known for his large-scale sculptures including a seven-foot tall golden apple outside the gallery and statue of a golden bull called El Toro de Oro outside the Gansevoort Hotel.
He’s suing Luss and Hiscox Insurance, which offered the pittance of a payment in July and still hasn’t sent it, Cabrera said in the legal filing.
The artist, who is seeking at least $32 million in damages, is “devastated to find himself in this position and it’s painful to see these pieces which are so meaningful to him and so many others reduced,” his publicist told The Post.
“The Palmarius series is of deep personal significance for Enrique. Having created these works during one of the most challenging periods of his life, as the world was grappling with a pandemic.”
Neither Luss nor Hiscox returned messages seeking comment.
