Ala. quilter claims fraud in lawsuit

An elderly woman whose hand-woven quilts have been acclaimed by the art world and honored on U.S. postage stamps claims in a lawsuit that she was cheated financially by her promoters and corporate clients.

Quilter Annie Mae Young, a producer of the distinctive Gee's Bend quilts, accuses William Arnett, an Atlanta art scholar who brought the quilts to a wide audience, of falsely representing the proceeds from enterprises associated with the quilts, according to the lawsuit.

Kathy Ireland Worldwide, Shaw Living and Visa also are named as defendants, as are two of Arnett's sons and Tinwood Ventures of Atlanta.

A response filed by attorneys for the Arnetts and Tinwood denies the allegations and says the lawsuit was filed to "harass" and extort money from the defendants.

Attorneys for the other three firms could not be reached for comment Wednesday. A clerk at U.S. District Court in Mobile, where the suit was filed, said the firms had not yet been served with the suit.

In recent years, the quilts have been displayed in prestigious museums and were chosen for the U.S. Postal Service's American Treasures stamp series. Their designs also have been produced on rugs that sell for $5,000 each, Visa gift cards and a line of bedsheets by supermodel Kathy Ireland.

The lawsuit, filed last week in federal court, seeks a share of the profits from the quilt enterprise for Young. The suit might be expanded to include other quilters in the remote Gee's Bend community, about 60 miles southwest of Montgomery, said Young's attorney, Bill Dawson.

"They haven't gotten anything out of it," Dawson said Tuesday when asked about the quilters' share of the extensive marketing of the Gee's Bend brand.

The lawsuit says any agreement between the quilters and the defendants was oral and was not put into writing.

Tinwood attorney Greg Hawley said Wednesday that he met with many of the quilters in Gee's Bend on Tuesday and that they want to continue to work through the collective established by the Arnetts.

"The women feel this lawsuit breaks the bond of the collective and that one artist had decided she needs a larger share than the others," Hawley said. He said some of those quilters have hired Selma attorney Hank Sanders to represent their interests in the case. Sanders, also a state senator, did not immediately return a call to his office seeking comment.

Hawley said he feels the Arnetts have treated the quilters fairly.

"There's no question about that," Hawley said. "In a real sense, the Arnetts have provided an opportunity for the quilters to be recognized and celebrated around the country."

Earlier this year, several of the quilters told The Associated Press in an interview at the senior citizens center where they make the quilts that they were disappointed that the publicity for the quilts had not translated into money to help the isolated, impoverished community.

"We need something else here. We need stores, we need our roads fixed, we need day care, we need a washeteria," quilter Nancy Brown said at the time.

Hawley said some money has gone into a foundation to be used for community improvements and that it will be up to the members of the collective to decide how that money will be spent. He said he believes there is between $75,000 and $100,000 in the foundation.

The lawsuit calls the actions of the defendants "an extensive fraud" and complains that little money from the quilts has come back to Gee's Bend.

"While the defendants often proclaim the benefits of their efforts to the community, such has never been the case," the lawsuit says.