"faking it: originals, copies, and counterfeits" at FIT

did you ever stop to think that the fake chanel in your closet might be endorsed by mademoiselle herself? chanel loved fakes. she wore plastic pearls and used bronzer in winter months, and happily supplied counterfeiters with her very own swatches. because there’s no such thing as bad publicity.

meanwhile, madeleine vionette was so fed up with fakes that she stamped her designs with her thumbprint. dior marked his pieces with invisible ink. the counterfeit question has been argued since the dawn of designers.

the fashion institute of technology gallery presents this complicated history of knock offs in "faking it: originals, copies and counterfeits." the expo shows that between licensing agreements, diffusion lines, "inspired by" designs and just plain phonies, it’s hard to recognize a fake or even agree on what one is. on display is a moschino cheap and chic suit patterned directly from a roy lichtenstein painting; the logo on a yoshi yamamoto dress looks dangerously similar to louis vuitton's monogram; and then there's the two identical chanels, sitting side by side, made of the same fabric but different construction. these garments are all (at least legally) legit, right? FIT invites you to view these pieces and see for yourself.

as for your knock-off chanel, maybe the fact that it's fake - be it vintage, canal street or just inspired-by - is a fun fashion novelty in it's own right.

original chanel jacket on left, copy on right

faking it: originals, copies and counterfeits is on view dec 2nd 2014 - april 25th 2015 at the fashion institute of technology. 

written by julia popescu