Inside the Rise and Fall of the Anna Delvey Foundation: Art, Ambition, and Infamy

Anna Delvey

May 2, 2025: In the heart of Manhattan’s elite social scene, a bold vision took shape in the mind of Anna Sorokin—known to many as Anna Delvey. Posing as a wealthy German heiress, Sorokin captivated New York’s art and business circles with her ambitious plan for the “Anna Delvey Foundation” (ADF), a private members’ club and contemporary art hub intended to cater to the city’s cultural elite.

A Cultural Utopia in the Making

The ADF was more than just a vanity project. Sorokin planned to lease the Church Missions House, a historic building on Park Avenue South, transforming it into a luxurious, multi-level venue. It would feature an art studio, rotating exhibitions from artists like Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons, and Urs Fischer, as well as pop-up shops and exclusive social events. According to her, the foundation would be a haven for artists, collectors, and influencers—a hybrid space where high culture met high society.

The Web of Deception

But beneath the polished pitch was a web of deception. Sorokin misrepresented her identity, claiming to be a German heiress with a €60 million trust fund. Using falsified documents, she sought multimillion-dollar loans and lived a lavish lifestyle, skipping out on hotel bills, private jet fees, and expensive dinners—all under the pretense of securing funding for her “foundation.”

From Glamour to Guilty Verdict

The illusion unraveled in 2017, and Sorokin was arrested in 2018. Her trial captivated the public, shedding light on how she manipulated some of the most powerful institutions and individuals in New York. In 2019, she was convicted on multiple counts of grand larceny and theft of services, serving over three years in prison.

The Legacy and Pop Culture Impact

Despite the fallout, Sorokin has continued to insist that the Anna Delvey Foundation was a legitimate concept, not a scam. Her story reached an even wider audience through the 2022 Netflix series Inventing Anna, which chronicled her exploits and the tangled web of truth and fabrication she spun.

A Symbol of Style Over Substance

Today, the Anna Delvey Foundation exists only as a memory of what could have been—or what was never meant to be. It remains a symbol of ambition gone awry, and a cautionary tale about the seduction of image over substance in the worlds of art, finance, and fame.

Inventing Anna

Inventing Anna is a gripping American drama miniseries created by Shonda Rhimes, based on the real-life story of Anna Sorokin. The show draws inspiration from Jessica Pressler’s New York Magazine article titled “How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People.” Produced under the Shondaland banner, the series premiered on Netflix on February 11, 2022, captivating audiences with its portrayal of deception, ambition, and high-society intrigue.