Faking it or the Real McCoy?
When it comes to designer modern furniture it would seem we’re divided: there are those that are happy to have the faithful reproduction and those who couldn’t bear to have anything but the real deal.
It’s certainly a contentious issue and one that’s been a constant debate throughout my career as an interiors journalist.
Much like in fashion, there are those who would never dream of carrying a fake Prada handbag and those who are happy to turn a blind eye to the dodgy stitching and double “L” in Milan.
For the record, I stand firmly in the real deal camp. Much like I wouldn’t have a copied handbag, it also seems sacrilege to me to have a Louis Ghost chair without the Kartell label.
As such, my home is not filled with designer furniture and in fact the only piece I own is above mentioned Ghost chair.
To the uninformed, it appears to be snobby but for me and lots of others it means much more than that.
Many people question why having four chairs for the price of one isn’t ok and think people who would spend a months salary on a piece of designer furniture need to be carted off in a straight jacket.
I, however, disagree. The Eames lounger has long been the object of my affection. Every time I go to Liberty in London, I pay homage to this beautiful feat of design.
Unfortunately, with it’s hefty price tag, this gorgeous chair remains firmly out of reach for now at least.
Sure I could bag myself a much more affordable copy and many would wonder why I don’t, but for me it just wouldn’t be the same. I’d know that I didn’t own the real deal. While I’m sure I’d sit perfectly comfortably on it, I’d eye it with suspicion every time our paths crossed.
And with Charles and Ray Eames being the design team I most admire, I feel like I’d been doing them a disservice. It would be like throwing those years of thoughtful design back in their faces as if all the blood, sweat and tears (and prototypes) didn’t matter a jot.
Of course when it comes to faking it or the genuine article it doesn’t just come down to personal choice. There is the very real argument that design should be protected and designers nurtures. What’s the point of putting all that hard toil into a design only for someone to come along and use substandard materials and produce something for a fifth of the price.
I meet lots of new and established designers in the course of my work and the one thing they all live in fear of is being copied. They spend ages perfecting their designs only for some unscrupulous high street big wig to come along and rip them off selling similar designs for a fraction of the price. That’s why those Spend vs Steal features in magazines always make me feel a little off colour. I saw one the other day; a cushion was the object in question: one by a much respected creator of embroidered cushions, the other a carbon rip off, sorry, copy.
Of course I don’t know how the designer felt but I was certainly reaching for the phone to call ACID.
So there you have it, you know where I stand. Question is, where do you? Let the debate begin…
About the author: Alexandra Toso is the features editor at Furnish, suppliers of modern furniture.
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