Solow was born and raised in a Jewish family in Brooklyn. His parents were Isaac, a bricklayer, and Jennie Brill, a homemaker. He attended New York University. As of 2020, Solow ranks 426 on Forbes billionaires list of 2020 with a net worth of $4.2 Billion.
Career
In the 1970s, Solow obtained financing, and after buying out each of the many townhouses in that spot before, in collaboration with architect Gordon Bunshaft, Solow built a 50-story office building at 9 West 57th Street. As of 2017, the building is still considered a desirable location because of its unobstructed views of Central Park. It houses KKR, Apollo Global Management, Tiger Global Management and Chanel.
Legal Controversies
Solow had the largest individual loss from the Libor scandal in the U.S., estimated at half a billion dollars. After taking out a loan from Citibank to purchase the Consolidated Edison parcels along the East River to develop a seven-building, $4 billion project, Solow put more than $450 million in high-grade municipal bonds as collateral. However, during the economic downturn of 2008, Citi artificially inflated the Libor rates. This sunk the value of Solow's bond portfolio. On technicality, Solow defaulted on his loan, which allowed Citi to seize and sell Solow's bonds and sue Solow for the value gap of $100 million, a case Citi Bank won. In 2012, Solow attempted to sue Citi on the basis of securities fraud, but the case was dismissed. In 2013, Solow sued again, this time, over Libor. As of April 2019, the New York Federal Judge ruled in favor of Citi Bank and the Libor lawsuit will not be revived.
Personal life
Solow is married to sculptor and jewelry designer Mia Fonssagrives, the daughter of Lisa Fonssagrives, a Swedish model and the French photographer, Fernand Fonssagrives. They have two children and live in New York City. His son, Stefan Soloviev, now runs Solow Building Co. alongside his father and is in line to take over. He also runs an agriculture conglomerate called Crossroads Agriculture based in Colorado and New Mexico. He is ranked the 54th largest landowner in the United States. Solow is an extensive collector of modernist and renaissance art. Solow owns Young Man Holding a Medallion by Botticelli as well as paintings by Balthus, Henri Matisse, and Franz Kline; and sculptures by Alberto Giacometti. In February 2012, he sold a Francis Bacon painting for $33.5 million, a Joan Miró painting for $26.6 million, a Henry Moore sculpture for $30.1 million; and in February 2013, he sold an Amedeo Modigliani painting for $42.1 million. In May 2015 Solow sold Giacometti's 1947 sculpture L'homme au doigt for $126.1 million, setting a world record for the most expensive sculpture ever sold. Though Solow derives significant tax benefit from the collection's 5013 non-profit status, he provides no public access. In 2018, Solow arranged for his son to lead the Solow Art and Architecture Foundation, effectively passing control of the collection from Sheldon to Stefan without any estate tax.
