Andy Warhol, Prince at center stage in Supreme Court case
By JESSICA GRESKO
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Andy Warhol and Prince held center stage in a copyright case before the Supreme Court on Wednesday that veered from Cheerios and “Mona Lisa” analogies to Justice Clarence Thomas’ enthusiasm for the “Purple Rain” showman. Despite the light nature of the arguments at times involving two deceased celebrities, the issue before the court is a serious one for the art world: When should artists be paid for original work that is then transformed by others, such as a movie adaptation of a book? The case affects artists, authors, filmmakers, museums and movie studios. Some amount of copying is acceptable under the law as “fair use.” But larger scale appropriation of a work constitutes copyright infringement.
