Tax Dispute Holds Up Donation of O’Keeffe Paintings

SANTA FE, N.M. —  Many of the paintings that Georgia O’Keeffe wanted distributed to museums and other nonprofit institutions after her death remain locked up because of a tax dispute, attorneys say.

The artist’s estate and the Internal Revenue Service are in disagreement over the value of the paintings for purposes of computing estate tax liability, said estate attorney Robert Worcester.

He declined to elaborate, saying details were confidential. The IRS also had no comment, said an agency spokeswoman in Albuquerque. Jerry Wertheim, who has represented O’Keeffe’s niece, June O’Keeffe Sebring, said the dispute may have to be settled in court.

O’Keeffe died in 1986 at the age of 98. An estate settlement in 1987 stipulated that the bulk of the artworks go to a foundation, which would distribute the artworks to nonprofit institutions.

Museums named specifically by O’Keeffe say they have received at least their initial distribution, but much of the art that O’Keeffe intended for public viewing remains locked up, attorneys say.

The estate paid no New Mexico estate taxes because the state forgave that in exchange for $1.5 million worth of her paintings in 1987. Those paintings were given to the University of New Mexico and the Museum of Fine Arts.

Estimates in 1986 that the estate had $40 million to $50 million worth of art have never been publicly updated.