Velvet Underground Add New Complaint in Warhol Lawsuit

The Velvet Underground have added a new complaint in their lawsuit against the Andy Warhol Foundation. The band, who claim the foundation has illegally licensed the iconic banana image from the cover of their debut album, The Velvet Underground and Nico, have amended their complaint to backtrack on their contention that the artwork is in the public domain.

The Velvet Underground's lawsuit asserts that while the image itself is in the public domain, it has acquired a "secondary and distinctive meaning" that is almost exclusively associated with the band and their music. As such, the group objects to the Andy Warhol Foundation selling merchandise with the image, with the implication that they are official Velvet Underground products.

The newly amended suit is more aggressive in its attack on the Foundation, insisting that "even if the Banana design has not been in the public domain at all times, the Warhol Foundation can't claim copyright on it." The group and their attorneys will need to convince a judge that while no one technically owns the image, they should control how the image is used.

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Velvet Underground Add New Complaint in Warhol Lawsuit

The Velvet Underground have added a new complaint in their lawsuit against the Andy Warhol Foundation. The band, who claim the foundation has illegally licensed the iconic banana image from the cover of their debut album, The Velvet Underground and Nico, have amended their complaint to backtrack on their contention that the artwork is in the public domain.

The Velvet Underground's lawsuit asserts that while the image itself is in the public domain, it has acquired a "secondary and distinctive meaning" that is almost exclusively associated with the band and their music. As such, the group objects to the Andy Warhol Foundation selling merchandise with the image, with the implication that they are official Velvet Underground products.

The newly amended suit is more aggressive in its attack on the Foundation, insisting that "even if the Banana design has not been in the public domain at all times, the Warhol Foundation can't claim copyright on it." The group and their attorneys will need to convince a judge that while no one technically owns the image, they should control how the image is used.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Velvet Underground Sue Andy Warhol Foundation For Copyright Infringement

The Velvet Underground have filed a lawsuit in a Manhattan federal court against the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts over the iconic banana image found on the cover of their 1967 debut album, The Velvet Underground and Nico. Band leaders Lou Reed and John Cale claim that the foundation has illegally licensed the image for use on various products, including iPad cases. According to papers filed by the musicians, Cale and Reed have accused the foundation of seeking to "deceive the public" into believing that the band have given their "sponsorship or approval" to this merchandise.

The band is seeking unspecified damages for trademark infringement and unfair competition. "Inasmuch as the Warhol Foundation has such a large number of Andy Warhol designs, all of which are presumably unique works that are highly valued in the marketplace, there would appear to be no economic need to include the banana design among the designs that defendant licenses," the court papers say.

Warhol served as the band's manager and producer, and he created the logo – which includes the phrase "peel slowly and see" - from an image of a banana taken from the public domain. Warhol was paid part of the band's label advance for the design but never copyrighted the image.

The Velvet Underground have not objected to licensing the cover image in the past. In 2001, the group licensed its use for an Absolut Vodka advertisement in which the stem of the banana was changed to look like a bottle cap for the "Absolut Underground" campaign.

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