The Tamesis
Ronald Lauder, a powerful art collector who has sponsored institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Getty Trust and the World Monuments Fund, appears more than 900 times in the Jeffrey Epstein-related dossier released by the Justice Department in late January.
Lauder, heir to The Estée Lauder Companies, appeared to have met with Epstein multiple times in 2017. While there was no direct communication between Lauder and Epstein, their respective assistants frequently emailed to discuss their meals and phone calls. Epstein and Lauder were often involved in these email chains.
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It was unclear from the emails how many times the two met, or even if they ultimately met, suggesting that Lauder’s schedule forced his aides to frequently change appointments with Epstein. But Epstein’s Gmail calendar alerts indicate that the two did have at least some meetings.
What they discussed also remains unclear, with only one email offering vague hints. In a 2017 message from Epstein’s assistant to Lauder, Epstein’s assistant mentioned that Epstein was seeking to speak with Lauder’s assistant to provide him with his “best guidance.” Epstein’s aide mentioned that he wanted to see two years of Lauder’s tax returns as well as his will. “I have conveyed your message to Mr. Lauder,” an aide to the cosmetics mogul wrote.
Epstein even seemed to want to bring his colleague, filmmaker Woody Allen, to confront Lauder. Before a proposed meeting in 2017, Epstein instructed his aides to “tell [Lauder’s assistant] If he comes back to town, he can have dinner with Woody. “The documents don’t say whether that dinner took place or whether Allen ultimately attended.
Other documents suggest Epstein may have played a role in Lauder’s art-related dealings with Leon Black, another major collector with whom Epstein worked closely. In 2014, Black’s representatives emailed Epstein an agreement governing a loan agreement for Kurt Schiwtters’ work. “Leon and Ronald Lauder decided that Ronald would have [sic] First period of possession,” the email states.
Blake and Lauder’s relationship appears to be corroborated by other documents in the archives. One of the documents appears to list a number of works from the Blake Art Collection; one of the works is a painting by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner Berlin street scenethe work appeared to be worth $50 million in 2016. The document states that Black owns 50% of the work. A Kirchner painting of the same name was acquired by Neue Galerie, a private New York museum founded by Lauder, which said on its website that the work is jointly owned by private collectors.
In another email, Epstein repeatedly asked Lauder for a museum tour, in which Lauder would take him and scientist James Watson on a tour of an unidentified institution. It’s unclear whether the tour came to fruition.
Representatives for Lauder did not respond to requests for comment.
Lauder, fixed art news Ranked among the top 200 collectors, he is widely regarded as one of the top art patrons in the United States. He served as chairman of the Museum of Modern Art and remains a trustee of the museum. A former board member of the Getty Trust, he has also been active in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, making a major gift of 91 artifacts to the museum’s Department of Arms and Armor in 2020.
At times, his patronage of these institutions has come under scrutiny. In 2024, protesters came to MoMA after the museum hosted an event hosted by the World Jewish Congress, a group led by Lauder. Two years ago, the World Jewish Congress said Israeli proposals for an apartheid state in Palestine were “unreasonable.” In October 2023, Lauder himself described anti-Zionism as “a direct threat to every Jew.”
Lauder has also made headlines recently for his involvement in the political sphere. Lauder, a close friend of Donald Trump and a major donor to Republican candidates and causes, has reportedly pushed the U.S. president to encourage the U.S. to acquire Greenland.
He is one of several prominent art collectors to appear in the Epstein dossier. While Black’s relationship with Epstein is well-documented, documents released earlier this year also revealed that Epstein corresponded with Steve Tisch and Jean Pigozzi. Both collectors said they played no role in Epstein’s sex crimes.
