For some time now, I have been writing regularly about the strange culture of the Purple World, and honor and respect for the man and his legacy. I have touched on things like bad behavior being excused inexplicably and getting value for the money you invest in your Prince obsession. This week in that vein I’ll focus on an unfortunate (and saddening) situation that came to light this week.
Steve Parke is an artist the Purple World knows, loves, and respects for the amazing artwork he created for Prince (Graffiti Bridge through Rave) and continues to create in service of others, and in honor of Prince.[1] He is known to be generous and kind. Kim Berry has come to be known as Prince’s hairstylist for 20+ years. Feelings about her in the Purple World are mixed, some love her no matter what, some loved her but have become skeptical of her motives, and others have been skeptical of her from Day 1 and will never be convinced otherwise. She is known for being “real” and telling entertaining stories about the Purple One.
This past Monday, Mr. Parke posted on his FB page that he was disappointed with the behavior of a friend, and laid out the specifics of the situation without naming the party. A summary of the specifics:
Parke provides a print for use in friend’s book. Finds print is being offered for sale on friend’s website without his permission. Contacts friend’s manager, who apologizes and assures him the listing for sale will be removed. Then Parke sees a public post by friend of the same print being autographed by friend at a public appearance in the same manner as the print (he comes to find) has been autographed for sale without his permission at various other public appearances.
The goal of his FB post does not appear to have been to work toward filing a lawsuit (certainly an established businessman like Mr. Parke is capable of filing suit when/if he feels he must) but rather to make the statement that, simply put, “This is not okay.” Unfortunately, the real cray-cray folks had to take it to a whole ‘nother level, and according to a follow-up post by Mr. Parke, “threaten violence.” Mr. Parke was gracious in removing the initial post while saying that he stood by his statement, he does not condone violence. Respect.
Many in the Purple World were quickly able to determine that the “friend” is Kim Berry. Prior to the post being removed, some of Ms. Berry’s fans, who were at the public appearance in question, commented on his post that the photos were given away and that he had misunderstood. Mr. Parke was kind and responsive to those questioning his personal experience with his friend. He addressed them directly and thanked them for their input.
Note: the day prior to Mr. Parke’s post, information surfaced regarding the L.A. Archives auction item – purporting to be “a rare piece of history from the collection of Kim Berry (Prince’s hairstylist) …Prince’s actual hair and purple comb…” The L.A. Archives Pop and Rock Memorabilia Auction was set for 2/16/19 at 11am EST. The backlash was serious and immediate. Ms. Berry has been called some pretty bad names in the past for selling Prince’s “used socks.” The idea of his hair being sold was just too much for some (myself included).
In my opinion many who do not know Ms. Berry used Mr. Parke’s legitimate concern as their opportunity to pounce on her as they’ve had negative feelings toward her for some time. Many have questioned certain aspects of her tenure with Prince. Prior to the “hair for sale” issue, was the book fundraiser concern. Ms. Berry has been making public appearances discussing her upcoming book on her experience as Prince’s hairstylist for some time now. There have been snags and various complications (with writers, publishers, artists providing artwork) that have caused the book to be delayed. This past fall, a fundraising website was created for the purpose of helping publish the book. Many of us have done what we felt we could to try to help her get the book out into the world ($10k+ raised).
Some folks feel she has taken financial advantage of those who have supported. Some have publicly questioned and/or contacted me directly, in writing, regarding the legitimacy of the fundraiser, the value of the items included as gifts for donations, the contents of the book, the very existence of the book, and Ms. Berry’s intentions. I do not pretend to speak on her behalf or know what’s in her heart. I redirect people to her publicly posted info where they can make their own observations.
Ms. Berry responded to Mr. Parke’s public post & the LA Archives Auction incident with public posts wherein she states there is misinformation and misunderstanding. In the case of Mr. Parke, per Ms. Berry’s post, it was she who misunderstood her right to use the photo. In the case of the auction, Ms. Berry stated that she is in fact doing business with the “auction house.” The misinfo/misunderstanding is less clear here. L.A. Archives stated, “The very real lock of Prince’s hair, his do-rag, & his comb are no longer available for public auction sale. They were 100% authentic & Prince was 100% aware our consignor had specially saved them as she was gifted them by Prince himself… However, due to other fans being upset over such intimate personal effects being sold following Prince’s passing, our consignor has decided to withdraw them.” [2] You can read the public posts for yourself to try and ascertain what the misinformation is. Some say Ms. Berry simply threw an “assistant” under the bus and/or allowed the “auction house” to take the fall. Many concerned fans that commented on her posts, in the same way her fans commented on Steve Parke’s post were ignored and/or blocked.
Purple Folk love hard. That’s cool. We should be able to support our loved ones without disrespecting others who have bad dealings with them. Sometimes people we care for do the wrong thing. Everyone makes mistakes – mistakes being actions taken unintentionally or possibly without sufficient info, which one does not continue to repeat once one has all the proper info. Soooo, if it’s a pattern of repeated behavior calling it anything other than intentional is disingenuous. Love is forgiving. Forgiving is not ignoring. It is okay to say, “I did not appreciate it when you did xyz,” and then forgive if that’s what one wants to do. It’s a little harder to do that when an offender refuses to take any ownership or always plays the victim, and continues the bad behavior.
Outside looking in, we do not have to choose sides. We do not have to argue with strangers over the Internet, kick folks out of our Prince groups, or contact either of the parties to the actual issue threatening violence. It’s remarkable how much fire some folks have for people they’ve never met regarding issues about which they only have partial, secondhand information. While one may have an opinion on the issue transpiring between two other parties, if the parties having the issue actually know and have known each other for some time, and the one with the opinion is an Internet stranger and/or new friend/fan, why does that person think they know all the details and can dictate anything to either party? Cuz they love Prince? If it's love, Y U Screamin'...? Mature human beings deal with and properly resolve conflict without resorting to threats of violence.
Reputations are not necessarily who we are, but how we are perceived based on our outward behavior. When I hear a person I know to be reputable, kind, credible, etc., making a particular statement, I will take it seriously and if I don’t already know the details, I will look into it and act appropriately. Similarly, if I am dealing with a person who I know to be deceitful, disrespectful, irresponsible, etc., I will take what they say with a grain of salt but still, if I don’t already know the details, I will look into it and act appropriately.
While I definitely do encourage people to buy art from artists I support, I do not tell people to boycott. You choose how you invest your money. I provide verified info and encourage others to do research and make educated decisions. I’ll respect your educated decision and appreciate you respecting mine.
I don’t profit off my love for Prince and will not intentionally help straight up users gain illegally or inappropriately off the grief of others. What I will always do, with my whole heart is support real work/art created by real artists in love.
Much Love 2 u,
Violet
@violetesq
@violetbinteractive
Always on Our Minds ~ Forever in Our Hearts
[1] Parke’s original paisley heart design with a portion of sales earmarked for donation to the Baltimore Academy of Illustration, https://alwaysinourhair.com/shirt24526701 , Mr. Parke has also provided original works in support of the PRN Alumni Foundation’s goals, http://prnalumni.org/members/spotlight-steve-parke/
[2] L.A. Archives Facebook Page.