Renowned art critic Anthony Haden-Guest has taken legal action against fashion icon Libbie Mugrabi, alleging she is unlawfully holding nearly 100 of his artworks at her Southampton residence. The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, accuses Mugrabi of retaining these pieces—comprising cartoons and sketches—for 15 years.
The esteemed 89-year-old British-American critic and artist is seeking the return of 97 original drawings and cartoons that he claims Mugrabi has been displaying without permission. Haden-Guest estimates the value of each piece to be at least $1,000 and insists that Mugrabi has ignored multiple requests for their return.
Despite their history as friends, with Haden-Guest often seen accompanying Mugrabi to court, tensions have escalated over the artwork. He contends the pieces were originally placed on her walls for exhibition and potential sale purposes only, according to the court documents.
However, instead of facilitating the sale or returning them, Mugrabi allegedly decided to keep the collection on display in her home.
He says the drawings were originally framed and hung on Mugrabi’s walls fifteen years ago “solely for exhibition and sale purposes,” the Manhattan Supreme Court filing claims.
Instead of returning the goods, Mugrabi allegedly kept the art hanging.
In 2024, Haden-Guest was offered a pair of art shows for his doodles, and told his old friend he “urgently” needed them back.
He even offered Mugrabi the chance to buy whatever she wanted for a friend’s-only price of $750, but the drawings were never returned, the suit claims.
“There was no contemplation whatsoever that [Mugrabi] would own the Drawings,” the suit states.
But Haden-Guest also claims Mugrabi stiffed him on a 2023 oral agreement to help design her fashion and clothing brand.
Haden-Guest says he logged six months of creative labor drafting up looks, bags, hats, and even handkerchief concepts at $3,000 a month — stiffing him for $18,000.
The suit claims Mugrabi owes a total of $115,000.
Mugrabi, in a statement to The Post, called Haden-Guest’s allegations “bogus” and bizarrely claimed she wasn’t being sued by the art critic.
The Post has reached out to Haden-Guest’s lawyers for comment.
