The customized Porsche that was once owned by one of rock ‘n’ roll’s grooviest stars will soon be made available for purchase.
Janis Joplin’s family will auction her 1964 Porsche 356 SC Cabriolet Dec. 10 during the RM Sotheby’s Driven by Disruption auction in New York, according to a media release from the auction house.
The vehicle is forecasted to draw more than $400,000.
“Janis Joplin’s 356 C is without question one of the most important Porsches of all time,” said Ian Kelleher, the managing director of RM Sotheby’s West Coast Division. “It’s a fantastic automobile that transcends art, pop culture and social movements, and is as groundbreaking and stunning as the renowned singer was herself.”
Joplin purchased the vehicle in California in 1968 for $3,500 and soon decided to trick it out. The singer-songwriter commissioned Dave Richards, a friend and roadie for her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, to add a psychedelic mural to the vehicle. According to Sotheby, Richard’s wanted the car to convey ‘The History of the Universe.’ To the roadie, that vision looks like butterflies, jellyfish, and a painting of Joplin and her band members.
“Janis drove the car everywhere, all around San Francisco and down to Los Angeles when she was recording there,” said Joplin’s sister Laura Joplin, according to RM Sotheby. “Wherever Janis went in the car, her fans recognized it. When she parked it and returned, there was always at least one fan note under the wipers.”
When Joplin died in 1970, the vehicle was passed on to her family who permitted her manager, Albert Grossman, and his friends and family members, to drive the car. In the 1990’s the car underwent a “meticulous restoration” process, according to the auction. In 1995 the vehicle was showcased at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, where it would remain until September 2015.
