I have already explored the world of architectural shoes in a previous post last year, but it looks like further experiments and collaborations between fashion companies and architects require at least another post.
It was recently announced that the Lacoste footwear capsule collection designed in collaboration with Zaha Hadid Architects will finally be released in September 2009.
Some of you may have had the chance of discovering this project last October at the Frieze Art Fair in London where the background work for this collaboration was first presented. The final prototypes are now ready and from the images available they clearly reveal an architectural derivation. One important point for both the men and women’s shoes is the use of dynamic fluid grids that, wrapping up around the foot, expand and contract adapting ergonomically to the body.
Metal plates applied through a heat embossing and debossing technique to the calf leather create a sort of waving pattern, giving a tactile dimension to the shoes. The surface of the footwear turns therefore into a modern landscape as the waving patterns form a sort of 3D topography. Fluidity is added through the strap closure system that features a bi-stable snapping metal band encased in the leather strap at the upper-most end. The band wraps up and secures itself at the ankle in the men’s model (available in black and navy) and at the knee in the women’s limited edition (black and purple).
The collection is extremely limited: only 850 pairs will indeed be released and they will be exclusively available at high-end boutiques such as Colette in Paris, Dover Street Market in London and 10 Corso Como in Milan, which means that, for most of us, owning a pair of genuinely architectural shoes remains still a dream.
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