The lofty Design Museum of London, England is putting on a show of sneakers. It’s called “unboxed.” Sneakers as a work of art? An example of design? What… they have Art Deco sneakers? Maybe Bauhaus? Did i.m. Pei or Frank Lloyd Wright make extra money in the slow season by designing footwear?
Sneakers started their lives much less grandly. They were
made for use on the courts and sandlots. Cheap shoes with good soles
suitable for a sprint or someone running bases.
Basketball until recently was the sport of the poor.
You could outfit a team of five with sneakers at five bucks a pop and make a
hoop out of a wire hanger.
Not anymore. Gotta have those Air Jordans or Jimmy
Choos or Nike “Red Octobers” that went for $7500 a pair. $3750 per foot. More
expensive per foot than your average highway or a house in a gentrified
neighborhood.
This is even worse than the designer gown crowd. Leave it to
the rag trade to make 50 bucks worth of fabric into an ugly red carpet gown
that sells for eleven grand and gets worn once by the original owner.
I’m Wes Richards. My opinions are my own but you’re welcome
to them. ®
Any Questions? wesrichards@gmail.com
© WR 2021
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