Agnes Gund lays into MoMA board

One of the art world's grandes dames, Agnes Gund (pictured), has caused a terrific rumpus among her fellow board members at MoMA - the Museum of Modern Art in New York - for implying that, despite their colossal wealth, they do not come close to matching her own generosity when it comes to donating art to the museum.

"I really did feel I had to give a lot to MoMA, even though many of the trustees have a lot more money than I do," she is quoted as saying by the fashion magazine, W. The author of the article, Julie Belcove, reports that Gund had "a note of irritation in her voice" as she added: "There's only one other person I would say I'm like on the board of MoMA, and that's Lewis Cullman. Now, Lewis has more money than I do, but not a lot more, and he gives a lot of it away, but proportionally he gives more of his money, like proportionally I give more of mine, than, say - I won't name them but any of them you know, and that excludes David Rockefeller, who's been extraordinarily generous."

It is not known exactly who she is getting at, but it will make uncomfortable reading for those board members she chose not to praise. They include Mike Ovitz, former president of Disney, and Ronald S. Lauder, son of the late cosmetics tycoon Estee lauder, who according to Forbes is worth $3bn.

Perhaps fearing the wrath of these wealthy notables, Gund has now claimed she was misquoted in W. She told the New York Post: "I can't tell you how damaging this is to my relationships with these people. They are incredible generous, and give huge amounts. I think these quotes were taken completely out of context. I would never say that."

All that aside, no one can doubt the generosity of 70-year-old Gund, the heiress to an Ohio banking fortune. Not only did she spearhead MoMa’s $858 million renovation, she has also donated more than 150 works of art, including a favourite Jasper Johns, Between the Clock and the Bed.