{"title":"Imitation of Christ","description":"\u003cp\u003eImitation of Christ was a New York-based fashion label founded by Tara Subkoff in 1999, operating at the intersection of fashion, performance, art-world critique, and downtown social culture. Emerging alongside the post-Margiela generation of designers treating damage, exhaustion, imperfection, reuse, and collapse as aesthetic material, Imitation of Christ became one of the defining labels of early 2000s anti-commercial fashion culture.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRather than conventional runway presentations, the label staged guerrilla actions, institutional interventions, and hybrid events — including disruptions at Sotheby’s and Dior, sweatshop-politics-informed productions, and celebrity-cast presentations that collapsed distinctions between fashion show, performance, and social document. Collaborators and participants included figures from downtown New York’s art, music, and nightlife networks.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn September 2002, Imitation of Christ: A Retrospective was presented with Jeffrey Deitch Curatorial Projects at the Maurice Villency flagship store, New York — transforming a fashion presentation into a self-conscious institutional gesture. Material from these events is exceptionally scarce, having circulated informally through stylists, assistants, PR offices, artists, and musicians rather than institutional archives.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis collection brings together printed matter, ephemera, and photographic material connected to Imitation of Christ’s events and productions.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"imitation-of-christ-retrospective-deitch-archive-2002","title":"Imitation of Christ: A Retrospective — Archive Lot: Invitation, Press Release \u0026 Original Polaroids, Jeffrey Deitch \/ Maurice Villency, New York, 2002","description":"\u003cp\u003eArchive lot: original postcard invitation, stapled press release \/ participant sheet, and group of original Polaroid photographs\u003cbr\u003eJeffrey Deitch Curatorial Projects \/ Maurice Villency Flagship Store, 200 East 57th Street, New York\u003cbr\u003e17 September 2002\u003cbr\u003eVarying dimensions\u003cbr\u003eOffset print and instant photographs\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA rare surviving document set from the moment downtown New York fashion began collapsing fully into performance, art-world mythology, and anti-commercial image culture. Founded by Tara Subkoff, Imitation of Christ emerged alongside the post-Margiela generation of designers treating damage, exhaustion, imperfection, reuse, and collapse itself as aesthetic material. The stained invitation is central to that language: paper made to appear already handled, ruined, circulated, or recovered — the printed faux-water staining is original to the design.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePresented with Jeffrey Deitch Curatorial Projects at the Maurice Villency flagship store, \u003cem\u003eImitation of Christ: A Retrospective\u003c\/em\u003e transformed a fashion presentation into a self-conscious institutional gesture. The accompanying press release reads like a hybrid between artist statement, activist document, and downtown social record — referencing guerrilla runway actions, Sotheby’s interventions, Dior disruptions, sweatshop politics, and celebrity casting culture.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Polaroids function as production residue from inside that ecosystem: informal portraits suspended somewhere between casting material, backstage documentation, social archive, and artwork. Their importance now lies partly in how precisely they forecast the image economy that followed — lo-fi immediacy, damaged glamour, authenticity-as-style, and the collapse of distinctions between documentation and cultural production.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMaterial from early Imitation of Christ events is exceptionally scarce. Much of it circulated informally through stylists, assistants, PR offices, artists, musicians, and downtown nightlife networks rather than institutional archives. Complete surviving groups combining printed matter and original photographs are uncommon. Value may increase further if individual sitters are firmly identified or if the Polaroids can be tied directly to runway production or specific known participants.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCondition:\u003c\/strong\u003e Good vintage condition. Fold lines, handling wear, staple holes, soft creasing, surface marks, and age toning throughout. The printed faux-water staining on the invitation is original to the design.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShipping and handling included.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The New Rare","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53762318139730,"sku":"IOC-DEITCH-LOT-2002","price":1800.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0991\/5636\/1554\/files\/Imitation_of_Christ._A_Retrospective_September_17_2002_Maurice_Villency_Flagship_Store_200_East_57th_Street_postcard_invite._2002_front_52d90c6b-a162-4f9b-8a2e-db04df9a652e.jpg?v=1781601507"}],"url":"https:\/\/thenewrare.com\/collections\/imitation-of-christ.oembed","provider":"The New Rare","version":"1.0","type":"link"}