As though I needed another reason to love Domino magazine.
In the Ask Dara column of the December/January issue, a guy from Los Angeles writes in with this question: “I saw a great fake Saarinen Pedestal [aka Tulip] side table for half the price. When is it worth buying the real thing?”
Such a great question – and one I’ve tried to answer for clients many a time. Dara responds by explaining that “vintage” pieces (the originals) and “present-day licensed reproductions” are superior to knockoffs (“copycats”) due to higher-quality materials and more elegant detailing. That’s why they’re worth the higher prices.
She says, though, “Ultimately, the decision is based on your aesthetic and your wallet.”
Hmmm. So does that mean there’s there no ethical obligation to buy originals?
It’s easy to forget that there’s a person behind every design, but Eero Saarinen (at right, with Florence Knoll) didn’t/doesn’t receive a cent for knockoffs. Neither does the Knoll furniture company, which paid for the concept, design, prototypes, design revisions, and eventual production of the Tulip series. Is that fair?
Let me hastily tell you that I’m a glass house dweller on this one and am not throwing stones: I have a dining-sized CB2 “interpretation” of the Tulip table in my office; it’s called the “Odyssey.” I was just getting bossy color off the ground when I bought it, and I couldn’t swing the $1,000-plus price tag for a real one. (Now CB2 offers an even closer Saarinen knockoff called the “Monacle Side Table,” pictured at right).
Is buying “copycats” unethical? If, as urban legend has it, “Kate Spade” handbags from the guy on the corner actually increase purchases of the real thing, do companies even care? Are ethics only for those who can afford them? Can anyone help me out here?
Top picture of the two tables is from Domino: Knoll’s 20″D “Tulip” table is on the left, and the 15-3/4″ “Trumpet” table from Target is on the right. The picture of the whole Tulip series is from hivemodern.com. By the way, DC-area dwellers, it’s worth remembering that Saarinen also designed Dulles International Airport. Your fun fact for the day.