WASHINGTON – Manhattan art dealer Georges Bergès told Congress he “chose not” to renew his contract with Hunter Biden after earning $1.5 million in sales of his first son’s fledgling art to 10 buyers, leaving to Hunter without a known supplier as House Republicans seek impeachment. investigation into alleged corruption of the Biden family.
Bergès said his contract with Hunter, 53, quietly expired on Sept. 1, 2023, leaving it unclear who has represented the first son for the past four and a half months as the impeachment inquiry delves into the couple’s ties. President Biden with Hunter and his uncle James’ companies. Biden in countries like China and Ukraine.
“We have discussed extending it. For the moment I chose not to do it,” the Soho gallerist said last Tuesday in a closed-door interview with the House Oversight and Judiciary committees, according to a transcript reviewed by The Post.
Working with Hunter “was not the best decision for me,” Bergès said. “I never expected the whole security issue or the death threats and people assuming political affiliations, which was completely wrong.”
“It was a little more than I could chew…I obviously wanted my life back. So I have not agreed to renew that contract now,” Bergès testified.
Manhattan art dealer Georges Bergès told Congress he “chose not” to renew his contract with Hunter Biden after earning $1.5 million in sales of his first son’s fledgling art to 10 buyers. New York Post
Bergès earned a 40% commission on sales, meaning Hunter pocketed approximately $900,000 in a period spanning more than two years, or roughly equivalent to his father’s $400,000 annual presidential salary.
The art dealer began working with Hunter after being connected by Hollywood producer Lanette Phillips, who has hosted fundraisers for President Biden; Bergès told Congress that he differs from Hunter Biden on politics, but that he likes him as a person.
Bergès only identified three buyers whose combined purchases accounted for 70% of sales, and confirmed that Hunter Biden knew who they were, contrary to previous reports about an alleged ethics plan designed by the White House to keep names anonymous to avoid influence peddling.
Bergès said his contract with Hunter, 53, quietly expired on September 1, 2023. New York Post
Hunter’s “sugar brother,” Kevin Morris, a wealthy entertainment industry lawyer who began showering Hunter with at least $4.9 million in gifts and loans to cover taxes and personal bills shortly after meeting him at a campaign event in late 2019, paid $875,000 for 11 paintings in January. 2023.
In an unusual arrangement, Morris wrote a commission check to the gallery and credited Hunter’s payday against outstanding personal loans, Bergès said.
Only two other art buyers were identified: Democratic donor Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali and Bergès gallery co-owner William Jacques.
Naftali earned a prestigious presidential appointment after purchasing his first piece of Hunter art for $42,000 in February 2021, as well as repeated visits to the White House during that period, and later paying $52,000 for a second piece. She has denied trying to buy influence.
Jacques bought one painting for $40,000 in December 2020, another for $25,000 in February 2021 and a third for $32,500 in November 2021, his business partner said.
The other seven buyers were not named by Bergès, who insisted his motives were not political.
A source told The Post that Republican congressional leaders intend to force Bergès to reveal the identities of the additional buyers and then decide whether they should be made public.
The art sales have raised concerns among ethicists and politicians because Hunter previously engaged in lucrative business dealings in countries where his father dominated as vice president, often introducing his powerful relative to people who paid him for ill-defined services.
Working with Hunter “was not the best decision for me,” Bergès testified. “I never expected the whole security issue or the death threats and people assuming political affiliations, which was completely wrong.” New York Post
Bergès said previous reports were incorrect and that he never spoke to White House officials about the alleged ethical scheme to withhold buyer information from the Biden family, although at one point his contract with Hunter was revised to include that provision.
The art dealer said he exchanged pleasantries over the phone and briefly met in person with President Biden while representing his son.
Bergès stated “I don’t know” if Hunter has sold any work since their business relationship ended. The final sale negotiated by his gallery closed in November, but was agreed upon verbally beforehand, he said.
Hunter still calls “a couple times a week,” he revealed, including one day before Bergès testified, and “I think he obviously wants to work with me, but, you know, I have to make business decisions, too.”
Among other points of frustration, Bergès said, he was forced to pay for Hunter’s art exhibitions.
“I paid for them. Yes, I’m still bitter about a lot of that stuff,” she said.
Bergès said he had to pay up to $60,000 to organize a Hollywood art exhibition in October 2021 for Hunter that included his father’s then-embattled candidate for ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti, present while serving as mayor of Los Angeles. .
“I had to do all the framing. I had to do all the shipping. I had to speed it up,” she said.
Bergès said: “I took a risk and it really wasn’t worth it, but that’s one of the reasons why I haven’t renewed the contract.”
Bergès earned a 40% commission on sales, meaning Hunter pocketed approximately $900,000 over a period spanning more than two years. New York Post
Republicans questioned how $1.5 million in revenue could be considered too insignificant for an ongoing business relationship; Bergès noted in response that more than half of the sales were made to Hunter’s main benefactor, Morris.
“I’m trying to sell hello[s] art to several people, not just one,” he said. “I have not renewed the contract because I have to look at all the sales.”
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