Pornhub's Classic Nudes project sparks debate on cultural heritage reproduction

Pornhub launched Classic Nudes, an interactive guide featuring erotic artworks from major museums including the Uffizi, Prado, Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, National Gallery, and Metropolitan Museum of Art. The project, created with agency Officer & Gentleman, did not seek prior consent from the museums. The Uffizi, Prado, and Louvre objected and requested removal of their works, citing Italy's Cultural Heritage Code (Legislative Decree 42/2004) which requires authorization for reproduction of cultural assets. Pornhub's parent company MindGeek Holding voluntarily removed the contested content. The Musée d'Orsay, National Gallery, and MET did not object, and their works remain online. The case highlights ongoing debates about reproduction of public domain artworks in museums, freedom of panorama, and digitalization of cultural heritage accelerated by the COVID-19 crisis. Italy's National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) includes investments for digitalization of cultural heritage. The implementation of EU Directive 2019/790 on copyright in the Digital Single Market, particularly Article 14 on public domain visual works, is pending in Italy. A draft legislative decree adopted on August 5 would introduce a new article in copyright law stating that material resulting from reproduction of a public domain visual work is not subject to copyright unless it constitutes an original work, subject to cultural heritage reproduction provisions.