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Lynn Goldsmith’s 1981 portrait of Prince (left) and Andy Warhol’s subsequent 16 silkscreen images based on the photograph (right).
U.S. Supreme Court Collection
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U.S. Supreme Court Collection
Lynn Goldsmith’s 1981 portrait of Prince (left) and Andy Warhol’s subsequent 16 silkscreen images based on the photograph (right).
U.S. Supreme Court Collection
Photographer Lynn Goldsmith took a portrait of musician Prince in 1981. It was a fairly standard headshot—in black and white, with Prince staring into the camera.
He was early in his career, still trying to establish the reputation he has today as a pop icon. In 1984, Prince had just released the album The Last Day. Purple Rainhe was chosen for the cover of Vanity Fair magazine. The magazine commissioned pop culture icon Andy Warhol to create a portrait of Prince for the cover. He used a photo by Lynn Goldsmith, made a silkscreen print out of it, added some artistic elements, and instead of using a black and white photo, painted the face purple and used a red background. Both Warhol and Goldsmith were paid, and both received credit.
Yet years later, after both Prince and Warhol had died, Goldsmith saw her portrait again. But this time, the face was orange, and Goldsmith received no payment or credit. What started as a typical question about payment for a work has turned into a Supreme Court uproar. At the heart of the dispute are dozens of questions about what is distinctive about art. At what point is a derivative work transformative? The answer seems to have less to do with what art critics think and more to do with what the market thinks.
This episode was originally produced by WNYC Studios’ “More Perfect.” Original “More Perfect” episode Andy Warhol and the Art of Art Criticismproduced by Whitney Jones and Alyssa Edes, with assistance from Gabrielle Berbey. Edited by Julia Longoria and Jenny Lawton. Fact-checked by Naomi Sharp. Sound design by David Herman, mixing by Joe Plourde.
This episode of Planet Money is hosted by Jeff Guo and Julia Longoria, produced by Emma Peaslee, and edited by Jess Jiang. Maggie Luthar is in charge of planning. Alex Goldmark is the executive producer of Planet Money.
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Music: More Perfect and NPR Source Audio – “Lost in Yesterday”
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