Mason Rothschild's "Metabirkins" Spark Heated Discussion About Virtual Fashion

Artist Mason Rothschild is selling 100 faux fur Birkin bags on the NFT marketplace OpenSea, emulating Hermès' movement against the incorporation of real fur in its products. These assets come in solid shades such as lavender or a striking acid yellow, animal prints, and furry recreations of masterpieces such as Van Gogh's Starry Night.

The bags are currently being sold to followers of the project, predominately on OpenSea, Twitter and Discord. With a starting price of 0.1 ETH -- equivalent to $450 USD -- trading has resulted in a total of $800,000 USD. Although celebrities such as Future have taken to the metaverse to promote them, Hermès has released a statement to the Financial Times denouncing the products: " These NFTs infringe upon the intellectual property and trademark rights of Hermès and are an example of fake Hermès products in the metaverse."

As an artistic take on the icon, the lines are blurry as to whether it is a clever rendition of the luxury giant's products or an act of plagiarism. Major fashion labels are placing more of their attention on the digital market, with the rise of short films and accessories in video games. Dolce & Gabbana has also released a nine-piece NFT collection in conjunction with real-life brand experience, generating $6.1 million USD in sales.

Rothschild's collection highlights the marketing potential of luxury NFTs, but also the infringement of trademark rights for big brands and aspiring creators. Take a look at the fuzzy "handbags" above.

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