Metro

Painted into a corner

How do you purchase a painting that was never for sale?

If you’re one Manhattan gallery owner, the answer is by suing for it.

A SoHo gallery claims it had a deal earlier this month to buy a $1.6 million painting by pop artist Keith Haring from hedge-funder Jarrett Posner, but that the money man backed out.

Gallery owner Suzanne Geiss is now suing in Manhattan Supreme Court to force the sale through.

But the 1984 painting was never on the market and still isn’t, Posner said.

“There was never a sale. I’ve never heard of anything like this in my life,” Posner said. “I’ve never met the person, never agreed to anything.”

Posner “never appointed anyone as his agent, or gave anyone authority to sell the painting,” said Gabriel Levinson, Posner’s attorney.

The Martos Gallery and Geiss did not return calls for comment.