Thursday Talks #2

Der er næsten ikke noget, jeg hader mere en kopister. Folk der ikke har fantasi nok til at skabe deres egne designs, men blot åbenlyst kopier fra andre designere. For et par uger siden, fik jeg en mail fra en plakat/citat/print-designer, som ville dele sine nyeste designs med os. Et par af dem havde citater, som ”This is my favourite spot” og ”Perfection is boring”. Fine citater, bevares, sagen er bare, at det er citater, som vi selv lavede med Froh und Frau i starten af 2014. Knap så smart! Vil næsten kalde det dumt!

Hvor går grænsen for kopier? Det er jo ulovligt at kopiere og anvende originalens navn, men hvad med designs, der går så tæt på, at øjet næsten ikke kan se forskel? Den anden dag delte Christina Liljenberg Halstrøm (hende den seje designer af Georg for Trip Trap) Alexandra Raben‘s fine lampe, som Lene Bjerre Designs har fortolket i en version, der går virkelig tæt på originalen. Andre firmaer som Bloomingville, House Doctor og Søstrene Grene lancerer jævnligt produkter, hvor man ikke et sekund er i tvivl om, hvor inspirationen kommer fra. Næsten endnu værre er, at mange elsker dem, og mange bloggere skriver endda om disse virksomheder og designs, fordi de har været til et event, og pludselig er et eller andet stærkt inspireret design det helt nye must-have.

Den type firmaer og designere, der lader sig inspirere lige lovligt meget af andre, minder for mig mest om de der små fisk, der svømmer rundt omkring hajens mund eller blodsugende igler! Hvad med at samarbejde med de dygtige designere i stedet for at nasse på deres designs? Det handler om penge. Penge som firmaerne selvfølgelig helst vil have mange af til dem selv og ikke dele med designeren. Men helt ærligt. De småører, som i 5% af nettosalgsprisen eks. moms, der normalt skal betales i royalties, må de store virksomheder kunne undvære. Lene Bjerre Designs havde faktisk et overskud på 4.8 mio. i 2013, så mon ikke der kunne være råd til at give Alexandra en lille del af dette i stedet for at nasse?

Alle kender nok også de små huse, oprindelig designet af Anne Boysen, men som de fleste i virkeligheden nok bedst kender fra Bloomingville. Anne fik dog de oprindelig huse produceret sammen med Applicata. Annes huse er lavet i FCS certificeret egetræ og skabt på dansk jord, mens Bloomingville, som i øvrigt påstår de har designet dem, får dem lavet til en brøkdel af prisen et ukendt sted i udlandet. Listen af designs, som Bloomingville påstår er deres designs, er uendelig lang. Fy!

Her på bloggen hylder vi i den grad originaliteten, takker nej tak til presseevents hos dem, der går for tæt på, og skulle vi sove i time, og skrive om noget, du mener en anden allerede har designet, så hold dig ikke tilbage med en kommentar. Mens mange bloggere, rent faktisk hylder kopierne, som en måde at fylde sit hjem med lookalikes, en af dem her, så har vores blogger kollega, Frida, Trendenser, dedikeret en kategori, “Lika som bär“, hvor hun viser, hvor tæt forskellige producenter går på originalerne.

Så lad os fremover sammen hylde designerne med de gode idé i stedet for kopisterne – også selvom den originale koster en skilling mere!

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There is almost nothing I hate more than copyists. People who do not have enough imagination to create their own designs, but just blatantly copies from other designers. A few weeks ago, I got an email from a poster/quote/print-designer, who wanted to share his latest prints with us. The ones that caught my had quotes that said “This is my favorite spot” and “Perfection is boring.” Fine quotes, indeed, however, quotes and prints we did with Froh und Frau in early 2014. Smart thinking, no! Stupid, yes!

Where goes the line for copying? It is illegal to copy and use the original name, but what about designs that are so close that the eye can hardly tell the difference? The other day Christina Liljeberg Halstrøm shared (you probably know her from the cool design of Georg by Trip Trap) Alexandra Raben’s fine lamp, which Lene Bjerre Designs have interpreted in a version that is really close to the original. Other companies like Bloomingville, House Doctor and Søstrene Grene regularly launches products, where you are really not one second is in doubt where the inspiration comes from. Almost worse, is that many love them, and many bloggers even write about these companies and designs, because they’ve been to an event and suddenly something heavily inspired design is the new must-have.

The type of companies and designers who are inspired a bit too much by others, mostly reminds me about those little fish swimming around the shark’s mouth or blood-sucking leeches! What about working with the talented designers instead of freeloading on their designs? Of course it’s all about money. Money companies obviously prefer to have many of to themselves and not share with the designer. But honestly, it is really just pennies, i.e. 5% of the net selling price excl. VAT, which is normally payed in royalties. Royalties the large companies definitely could afford pay. Lene Bjerre Designs actually had a surplus of 4.8 million in 2013, so of course they could afford to give Alexandra a small part of this instead of freeloading!

All of you probably also know the little houses, originally designed by Anne Boysen, but in fact probably best known as a Bloomingville design. Anne got the original houses produced by Applicata. Anne houses are made in FCS certified oak and created on Danish soil, while Bloomingville, who, incidentally, claim they have designed them, get them done at a fraction of the price at an undisclosed location abroad. The list of designs that Bloomingville claim to be their designs are endless.

Here on the blog, we pay tribute to originality, we often say no thanks to press events at companies that goes too close and should we be caught sleeping on the job, and write about something you think someone else has already designed, then please do not hold back with a comment. While many bloggers actually celebrates the copies, as a way to fill their home with lookalikes, one of them here, others, like our fellow blogger, Frida, Trendenser, have dedicated a category; “Lika as bär” in which she shows how close different manufacturers are to the originals.

So let us come together, celebrate the designers with the good idea instead of those who copy others – even if the original cost a dime more!