Wednesday, June 6, 2007

Just a few more pics of imitations.

Why counterfeit a few purses when you can try and copy the whole store?


All four pictures on this post are on www.hemmy.net, which shows more Chinese fakes. The store above is in China. I imagine that if most of the population is not accustomed to reading English often, they could mistake the store name for the real Prada.

Same principles at work in the next few examples:






I've had a lot of fun looking up counterfeits on the web!

Tip Your (Knockoff) Hat to Imitations and Counterfeits!

The problem of counterfeit goods has been turned into a fashion statement by the Dutch/Brazilian designer Bea Correa. She first drew attention for her knockoff Louis Vuitton purses with the word 'FAKE' stenciled across them. Correa said she was surprised at the enthusiastic public response - even people who already owned the real thing wanted one. (Source)). If you want one of these hot items, you'll have to make a fake, as they're no longer available. (Just buy a knockoff LV and stencil "FAKE" on it!)

Correa's next big statement was a line of T-shirts called Fakewear.



Then again - it's not entirely clear WHAT exactly, is being declared as fake!



Want to see more imitations? You're in luck. People are more interested in this than I realized!

Germany has the Museum Plagiarius in the city of Solingen. (be sure to check out the slideshow). Proves it's not just the Chinese who pull imitations.

In fact, a 1992 article in the International Herald Tribune about the Museo del falso in Salerno, Italy, makes it clear that all the Chinese practices we've heard about in recent times may have originated in Europe!

Is this the ultimate irony - Chinese imitating European imitations?

Thailand is home to the Tilleke and Gibbins Museum of Counterfeit Goods established in 1989. Some of the pictures of the fakes are incredible!

And in Paris, visit the Museum of the Counterfeit.

And finally, make sure you check out a photolog tracing a fried chicken fakery gone wild in New York City: Satan's Laundromat. It's unreal! (Sorry. I couldn't resist it.) When you're done with that, go to another post on the same photolog for Colonel Sanders wannabes.