The imperative to “maximize net utility for society” would yield so many wild results that this question would be rendered well beyond pointless. In any case,

The imperative to “maximize net utility for society” would yield so many wild results that this question would be rendered well beyond pointless. In any case, I believe that the negative utility created by no original artists producing work because people like Warhol rip them off and mass produce (not to mention the [IMO] negative utility of distorting society’s expectations of art and artists) would far outweigh the utility of someone enjoying a slightly distorted version of an original piece. So even if that were society’s imperative, it’s not at all self-evident Warhol’s actions are positive utility and should be accepted.