The following is an excerpt. To view the full article please visit the link below
Taking a design or symbol or artifact out of context can strip it of meaning and produce real damage to the culture being borrowed from, says Brigitte Vézina, a lawyer who specializes in intellectual property and is a fellow at Waterloo's Centre for International Governance Innovation.
Part of the problem is the dynamic, fast-paced nature of the fashion industry, Vézina said in a talk Monday at the centre.
This business has a long-established culture of copying. Fashion also thrives on controversy. And it has recently developed a taste for other people's folk art.
"There's such a high demand in fashion …
* * *
