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Is Building a Design Knock-Off Okay for Personal Use/Edification?
Many of us armed with tools and skills have, at some point, seen something we wanted to buy—then decided we'd rather build it ourselves, either to save money or for the fun of it. So, here's a sticky question: With design piracy being such a hot-button issue, how do you feel about someone knocking off an existing design, as a one-off for their own personal use? And does it differ if the design is considered a classic?
For example, let's say you had the capability to create bentwood forms, do metalworking and upholstery, and you decided to make yourself an Eames Lounge Chair for your living room. Your friends would probably be impressed. Versus the stink you might have on you for copying an end table that you saw at this year's Salone.
I ask this because I recently came across this post of a father-and-son team building a desk with built-in cable management. The desk is a knock-off of the Bluelounge StudioDesk, minus the routed cable slot. Similarly, I follow a DIY blog written by a young mother living in the Alaskan wilderness. She frequently blogs about seeing a nice piece of furniture at Pottery Barn, not being able to afford it, and using her skills to build a copy for herself.
My first thought with the desk was, that's a cool bonding experience for a father to share with his kid. Similarly, I cut the DIY mom some slack because she's on a budget and I admire her skills. Both parties presumably build these things for personal use, not to sell, so it doesn't jump out at me the way for-profit design copies do, even though I realize neither of my defenses for them would stand up in court.
What are your thoughts? Have you ever knocked anything off for yourself? How would you feel if you were the original designer? And lastly, do the educational aspects of constructing a duplicate design outweigh any wrongdoing? (An early art-school assignment I remember is the standard trace-the-Rembrandt, and the first piece of furniture I ever built in class was Gerritt Rietveld's Red-and-Blue chair, fully sanctioned by the professor, in order to learn about joinery.) Let us know in the comments below.
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Comments
There is nothing wrong with creating a one-off duplicate for yourself, and frankly, if I was the original designer, I'd be flattered.
The harm comes when you duplicate and sell for profit.
That's when it's an IP violation.
If you build it for your self, i think is a nice, but is even nicer if you create it for your self using the concepts you like, but you do it on your own style, if you just copy.... is not a crime, but if you copy to sold to some one else and pretend is real, is a crime!!
What about a costumer asking to an artisan to copy a piece for him? moral fault or a copyright crime? who is guilty, the costumer or the artisan?
Value for the creator/producer is created at the first pencil line and reaches a maximum sometime after mass production.
Value for the consumer is created when the object is in their hands.
I don't think you can compromise the value for the producer ('steal') by building a one-off (invariably with your own tweaks due to special features or limitations of your tooling). You clearly weren't going to buy it.
Similarly, if someone sees your work and starts pumping them out for cheaper, or accessing different markets that you can't, it's probably a competitive advantage due to scale or experience, and if it's just because they are dumping waste and paying children to make the item then hopefully other regulations, tariffs, etc. would level the playing field. And yes, I recognize that I'm dreaming on that last point, but less than expecting work to be 100% original.
2. All furniture today is already ripping off of something else. That table is like four at Ikea, just with a little more of a radius here and a little sliding bit. Wow! Who cares if someone uses the same idea and builds it at home.
I have even helped a guy who wanted to produce one of my table designs for personal use, providing the technical drawings and giving some advises about its construction.
More like 'homage'..... These people have seen a good piece of furniture and like it so much that to be able to get one like it for themselves they're making it.
If I was the original designer I would feel flattered that my product was so desirable that people who couldn't afford it had made their own. However if someone was copying my design to sell on 'knock-offs' of my product then I would be really pi55ed!! and would probably seek some sort of recompense if legally protected, and yet the way product design is going are our ideas going to be protectable in the future??
almost all furniture designers draw from one another and follow trends, except for maybe those on the very high end.
As for academics: if the purpose of the assignment is to be original one should tread carefully when drawing large amounts of inspiration from one piece.
It's of no one's business whatever I do without any commercial goal in mind.
I can do whatever I want with it, no matter if it is a copied artwork, design, product, painting or what else.
I can even fool my friends if I am one of those lame-ass show-off braggers...as long as I don't maliciously deceive it and try to make money with it (selling, trading etc.).
Privately selling it can become risky and is kind of in a grey area. As long as there is only one item existing it might be okay if it is clearly advertised as made by yourself. But sell it with a contract stating exactly this, because you'll never know what the new owner will do with it...thinking of reselling with false advertising and than blaming you...who knows.
Regarding your posting and the concerns mentioned about the posts of that woman from alaska and the father and son project:
They can report about it without any concerns as well...freedom of speech.
greets
Now if they are out to make a profit from the design or to pass it off as an original, obviously we've crossed a line in to plagiarism.
How would I feel: well, I've had my stuff knocked off many times. And in some cases I've even had individuals come to me and ask about a particular detail or method, and I'm always happy to explain and even provide pictures of how it was done. Consider it flattery from an aspiring student?
I really liked the modern design of the box and that it had a cubby but couldn't justify paying $350 for it when I had most of the woodworking tools I needed. For less than $100 I had all of the lumber I needed (3/4" hardwood plywood) and probably 30 hours later I had a beautiful toy box for my daughters birthday that I know wont fall apart any time soon. Can't say the durability of the actual box is all that great based on reviews I read.
Overall it's similar, but not exacting. The lid is not inset and does not use euro-hinges. Instead I used rockler torsion lid-stay hinges. At best i'd say my variation is a sincere imitation.