Copy cat: New exhibition studies fake goods

Photographer Marco Roso has documented Item Idem’s personal collection of counterfeit and imitation goods, and an accompanying essay by Victoria Camblin explains the artist’s fascination.

‘Like status anxiety itself, authentic desirables are the cultural products – regardless of where they are manufactured – of a more or less Western, ‘free’ consumer society,’ writes Camblin. ‘Fake objects that imitate them, meanwhile, are by and large devised in social contexts that do not necessarily fall under the jurisdiction of the democratic.’

Brands are increasingly realising that what used to be considered copyright theft, is now emerging as a useful resource for product innovation.

For more information, look out for LS:N Global’s forthcoming Anarconomy Decade report, as part of the Spring Trend Briefing.