A good friend of mine, Eneri Abillar is taking part in the latest Scion art exhibit titled, “Use Me,” curated by Yuri Psinakis.

I asked Eneri what his inspiration and the thought process behind his designs that included two Louis Vuitton bags taken apart and put back together with a new design posing questions on whether his design is “real” or “fake” and what the worth of the item may now be and a Rolex deconstructed and re-painted in a matte grey which questions the authenticity and is this something that the brand may “borrow” and use for their future designs for retail.

E: My concept of the show involved BRAND and Product fakes. I’ve had the blessed opportunity to design for many brands in my career and have always been intrigued with the REPLICA market. Sitting in design meetings with strategist, sales, and designers, I really got an idea as to why BRAND is so strong in the world today. So given the arena of an art show I took the forum to answer specific questions about BRAND and replicas.

But I basically wanted to show what I would want to design for both factories and brands alike. Of course the LV and Rolex got most of the love. But fakes have also intrigued me. You and I know how much attention customization can affect an everyday car. But take that same attitude and apply to a replica bag or watch. The piece becomes one of a kind and blurs the line of whether it’s a fake or ART.

E: The biggest question I wanted to answer was whether or not I could make a FAKE product more desirable then the original which in turn answered my personal design question of “what would I do for these brands given the opportunity to design for them”?

USE ME at the Scion gallery is a great show that features products by artists and craftsmen that are of great ability and talent. Drawing from a talent pool from California and the Pacific Rim (namely, the Philippines), the show is an excellent display of people whose work you will definitely see soon featured with major brands. The show runs through November 12, running for just about a month.

Scion Presents: Use Me

Artists Involved

Eneri Abillar /
Altar Native /
Bea Valdes /
Ben Venom /
BRD Motorcycles /
Carl E Smith /
Chad Wright /
Kevin Craford /
Mike Parillo /
Ronaldo Sandoval /
Thomas Meyerhoffer /
Zac Wollons

Event Description

Curated by Yuri Psinakis.

Art, craft, and culture come together in an exhibition of unique objects, and the designers who create them, that beg, USE ME.

Show runs: October 15, 2011 to November 12, 2011.
Opening reception: Saturday, October 15, 2011 7-10PM.
Where: 3521 Helms Ave. (at National) Culver City, CA 90232