Griffith Review 79: Counterfeit Culture

'A faker,' said Orson Welles, 'makes fools of the experts. So, who's the expert? Who's the faker?'

Griffith Review 79 lifts the curtain on fakes, frauds and forgeries. Treading the tightrope between art and lies, it explores the appeal of stories, objects, bodies or experiences that offer the false promise of authenticity. How do we discern what's real and what's not in a time of influencers and identity scams, counterfeits and cosmetic surgeries, disinformation and threats to democracy? From the imitation game and the uncanny valley to con artistry, trickery and scams, artifice makes the world go round—but perhaps all is not as it seems.

With a magician's flourish and a smooth sleight of hand, Counterfeit Culture unveils the agony and the ecstasy of the unreal. Can you spot the fake? And does it matter?