COUNTERFITS
With the help of computer technologies, the virtual spaces that we traverse in the metaverse are expanding more rapidly than ever and increasingly mimicking our physical world. The expansion of these virtual spaces is happening at a much faster rate than that of our comprehension and response. The breakneck speed of technology’s advance leaves us very little time for critical examination, thus creating vast gray zones in terms of functionality, purpose and legality.
Virtual fashion, or digicouture, first emerged with the introduction of 3D design processes and since then developed rapidly into a niche, lucrative market. In order to contest the bold claims of virtual fashion democratizing fashion for the masses, COUNTERFITS is an attempt to create counterfeit virtual clothes. In a similar fashion to Maison Martin Margiela's photocopied clothes, the project takes 3D designer Alejandro Delgado's Immortality dress and applies a custom filter which elicits the impression of the dress being scanned. The resulting visual code is then applied onto a self-designed 3D dress. Drawing further inspiration from Baudrillard, Dada and bootlegging as a design practice, COUNTERFITS presents a collection of augmented reality experiments aimed at creating virtual fashion that is free and truly accessible.
