Year: 2023
Medium: Calf leather (Togo), hardware, zipper, paint, adhesives, cardboard, electronic wires
Dimensions: 14” W x 13” H x 7” W
Video Duration: 1 min
Location: Home Gallery, 291 Grand St. New York, NY 10002

In Birkin, Alexander Si hand-built a full-scale replica of a Hermès Birkin bag using traditional leathercraft techniques and materials sourced online. The bag took over 85 hours to make, all documented and condensed into a one-minute video styled after viral “making-of” clips common in luxury handbag marketing. The video pairs fast edits, orchestral music, and ASMR sound to highlight process while mimicking the promotional language of fashion media.

Presented in a storefront gallery near Manhattan’s Canal Street—long associated with counterfeit luxury goods—the installation echoes a retail window display. The work raises questions about authorship, authenticity, and labor: who gets to be called an artisan, and whose labor is made visible or valued. By occupying the space between European luxury craftsmanship and informal economies of imitation, Birkin blurs the line between critique and participation.

Supplementary Materials
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Review
Cultbytes