Ok so I know how many purist are out there and I am with you on hating knock-offs. But what about when you find these ridiculous deals at thrift stores or garage / estate sales?
I am not in such an economic state to buy everything I want legit right of the dealer, so I rely on finding good deals on vintage originals which I've come across every now and then. I would never purchase a new knock off of any sort directly from the dealer. But reality hurts and these knock offs are being produced all over. Would you buy it from a thrift store or garage sale to save it from the landfill? In the end you are not fulfilling the manufactures pocket after all (someone already did).
I've heard of people skipping for example an Eames Lounge (670) knock off at a thrift store for only $30 dlls in good condition. I mean really? would you skip it? Where do you stand on this?
reproductions with or without licence
The copyright rules giving extremely long protection like in Europe, seems mostly to gain the big producers giving them a monopol situation resulting in the fact that only institutions and very wealthy people can afford the furniture. I don't believe this was the idea the designers had in mind. Should only banks be able to afford a licenced version of for instance an Egg chair in leather with a price on more than 10.000 dollar?
I can't afford to be a purist
It would be great to have everything I want, but that is far from reality. I just bought four shell chairs for so much less than Herman Miller ones, which I could not afford. They are nice chairs and have the look, comfort and features I wanted. I'm happy with the knock-off.
Any guests who feel the need to check my labels aren't friends I want to have.
I can imagine it's that...
I can imagine it's that painful to some. I guess the answer is simple. Do it or Don't. Until I can afford the real deal I won't skip those hot deals! I also don't want friends flipping my furniture regardless of whether they are real or not.
I ask this question because I just recently got a knock-off vintage Saarinen side table for $5 dollars. I just couldn't skip it. There you go, I'm guilty. =P
Cripes...save it for Saint Peter!
Buy your knock offs. Or, don't buy knock offs.
But, please don't cloak your decision in the I'm-nobly-saving-it-from-landfill defense. The same breezy statement could be applied as a defense for buying stolen property, kiddie porn, or Karim Rashid merchandise.
All is landfill, in the end.
Oh you don't even know
Just because you're not environmentally conscious doesn't mean it's not a deciding factor for others. The environment is a big issue for me. I ride bicycle every day, I recycle up to the most ridiculous little thing I come across and yet I think about the environment when buying furniture.
I's not a nobly defense. In fact buying new furniture doesn't attract me too much. I rather find vintage for so many reasons. Yes, the landfill is one of them.
General Akashi Gidayu...
General Akashi Gidayu preparing to commit Seppuku after losing a battle for his master in 1582. He had just written his death poem, which is also visible in the upper right corner.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seppuku
Value vs. Value
from a purely objective standpoint if a piece of furniture is comfortable, durable, and cheap it's got an inherent value no matter what it looks like.
However, we're all pretty far from objective. I don't mind knock-offs as much on the second hand market. Most of them were made domestically or at least in countries with decent labor practices like Italy. And many "knock-offs" have become design pieces in their own rights - Mr. Mulhauser I'm looking at you.
If your goal is to have a hip swinging designy pad to impress your friends you're only going to get so far with knock-offs. Most design afficionados can spot a fake from across the room. Some of us can spot them even farther away. And a lot of what makes great design GREAT is far deeper than appearance - its the materials, the subtle angles, the slight tweaks, the designer's intuition and knowledge. I've sat in a dozen copies of the Eames Lounge- Chair. None of them were as comfortable as the real one.
But reality is reality. I owned a Plycraft chair for 3 years before I was able to buy a real Eames Lounge. I never pretended the Plycraft was the real deal - it was just a place holder until the day I could get what I truly wanted. And the reward was all the better when that day finally happpened.
knock-offs
"Most design afficionados can spot a fake from across the room. Some of us can spot them even farther away."
Good for you that you belong to such a sharp eyed subset of afficionados, but there are "fakes" and fakes. The development in e.g. China is going forward in a rapid pace. Soon they will be using CNC-machining and all other modern equipment to produce reproductions which are not fakes at all from all legal perspectives; they are free and fully legal from an UK copyright law perspective.
I can imagine to buy such a reproduction for a third of the price of a so called original.
Good to know you're still wit...
Good to know you're still with us Gustaf. That is an interesting print.
On the other hand, here's how this disaster occurred. I was walking to a thrift store. They usually have some tables and chairs sitting outside the store and there's this faux Saarinen tulip side table. From far away I knew it was fake so I passed right by it. Didn't found anything interesting in the store so on the way out, just for kicks, I asked the guy how much was the table outside. He said $5 I was like "eh, what the hell"
This table even made it to the screens. See screen shot of Mad Men. You can tell from the bevel edge it's a faux. Mine was black with the wood formica top.
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