In Tolstoy's view, most celebrated works of high art derive from no real experience but rather from clever imitation of existing art.
Pliny listed as his most celebrated works a representation of drinking doves and a clever imitation of the "unswept floor" of a banquet room (asarōtos oikos).
Distortion, and the Shadow Acquavella 18 East 79th Street, Manhattan Through Oct. 7 The clever imitation of a movie poster advertising Damian Loeb's sixth New York solo show creates disproportionate expectations.
One of the cleverest ploys of the imitation manufacturers was to foster the merging of the genuine and the imitation in the same instrument, suggesting to the world at large that both are artistic equals.
Ken Tucker from Entertainment Weekly praised guest actor Alan Ruck's "sustained, understated" performance, and also called Olivia being revealed as Bell's vessel "a clever development," especially praising actress Anna Torv's imitation of Nimoy's voice rather than "doing the obvious thing and hav[ing] her lip-synch Nimoy reading the lines".
She looks in good condition with her large black bill, red tail and white mask and her owner says she can whistle the tune of Flower of Scotland, does a passable imitation of R2D2 and is "very clever and funny".
Not content to stick to the cheap imitation of tablets and other computers, the clever copiers at Abiko have produced a "homage" model of the Dyson bladeless fan.
A clever illustrator's psychological trickery has spawned a thousand imitations, writes Adam Eley.
But unlike shows that build on precedent and try to add something new, "The Deep End" is a pale imitation without smart writing, imaginative casting or even a clever conceit.
ABC tried to woo both Mr. Letterman and Mr. Leno over that period, while Mr. Kimmel persevered, improving his monologue skills, polishing his performing style and making increasingly clever use of videos that stamped his show as an original rather than an imitation.
It's hard to tell from these exercises how effective will be the former Young Ones star's imitation of the media tycoon – but if it's as half as clever as his Peter Mandelson in the 2011 pastiche The Hunt for Tony Blair, then we are in for a treat.
