Leading counterfeiting workshops at Garanti Gallery, Istanbul, September 2007. Photo by Evren Uzer.
"Creating Knockoff Logos:" a downloadable PDF instructional guide
Counterfeiting workshop area installed at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, March 2008.
Counterfeiting workshop area installed at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, March 2008.
Exhibited as part of "Forged Realities," UniversalStudios Gallery, Beijing, China, April 2007.
Featuring works by seven makers: Kat (Tokyo), Suzy (New Haven, CT), Jennie (Kingsville, OH), Nicole (Jackson, MS), Carrie (TN), Katie (UK), Stephanie (San Francisco, CA)
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The Counterfeit
Crochet Project (Critique of a Political Economy)
2006 - present
global
collaborative project, travelling to Beijing, Istanbul, Manila, and San Francisco. Visit counterfeitcrochet.org to learn more!
Watch KQED's SPARK* documentary segment, May 2008
I
created a website soliciting crocheters to join me in hand-counterfeiting
designer handbags: Fendi, Gucci, Chanel, Prada, etc. Participants
troll the internet and choose a design that they particularly
covet, working off of low-resolution jpgs which they download.
The final results may or may not bear resemblance to the originals,
which also interests me.
The
resulting "translations" are both homages and lumpy
mutations. Crochet is considered a lowly medium, and the limitations
imposed by trying to create detail with yarn takes advantage of
the individual maker's ingenuity and problem-solving skills.
I
am also interested in how this project can be similar to contemporary
manufacturing and distribution channels. As a collaboration it
parallels the idea of "outsourcing" labor, but also
adds a democratic and perhaps anarchic level of creativity--within
the basic framework, participants have taken liberties with their
translations, changing colors, adding materials (cardboard, hot
glue, etc.) to suit their needs.
Makers
are encouraged to keep and wear their bags, in an attempt to insert
strange variants into the stream of commerce and consumption.
I ask for people to send me snapshots of their items to share
with others.
This
is an ongoing global project, with makers in from all over the world. Visit the official website for more information, downloadable PDF instructions and images.
In 2007 the project travelled to Manila, Beijing, and Istanbul for exhibitions and counterfeiting workshops. In 2008 it was expanded into a free-standing installation/workshop/display area for Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco for the exhibition "The Way That We Rhyme: Women, Art & Politics."
Diana's Dior
 Nicole's Dolce & Gabbana
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