Warhol on Trial: A Copyright Case That Shook Art

In May 2023, the US Supreme Court delivered a verdict that rattled the art world. It ruled that Andy Warhol's silkscreen of the musician Prince, based on a photograph by Lynn Goldsmith, was not protected 'fair use' when licensed commercially.

The decision drew a sharper line around how much artists can borrow from others' work — a question at the very heart of Pop Art, appropriation and collage.

For an art world built, in part, on copying, sampling and remixing, the ruling sent a clear and anxious message about the limits of transformation and the rights of original creators.

Image: “US Supreme Court” — Photo by Mr. Kjetil Ree., CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.