In 2007, when the contents of Vivian Maier’s storage lockers were sold off at a Portage Park auction house, Ron Slattery was one of three major winning bidders for boxes that turned out to contain the life’s work of a remarkable photographer.
In April 2012, however, Slattery turned 56 of his Vivian Maier photographs over to John Corbett and Jim Dempsey’s much-loved Wicker Park gallery, Corbett vs. Dempsey, for an exhibit and sale that opened in June, ran through December 2012—and culminated in a lawsuit in which Slattery is seeking damages of more than $2 million.
In addition, because of inadequate air conditioning, “the Photographs were exposed to excessive heat,” which caused the damage to be “exacerbated.”
In an additional document, Corbett and Dempsey note that another restorer, Joel Oppenheimer Inc., has estimated that $8,700 will cover the cost of repairing 53 of the photographs, and that Slattery has declined “multiple” offers by the gallery (and its insurers) to settle the suit for that amount.
