Ryan Plax • October 2024
Attention Toronto sneakerhead community! The Bata Shoe Museum has unveiled their newest exhibition titled ‘Art/Wear: Sneakers x Artists‘ featuring some of the most in-demand footwear collaborations in history.
The main intentions behind the exhibit aim to highlight the “growing trend of artists engaging in commercial collaborations, particularly with sneaker brands,” according to museum representatives.
The thesis of the latest installation aims to establish the fact that shoes can in fact be considered ‘art’, with some collaborations reaching a “similar status to limited edition artist prints.”
The exhibit opens to a large white wall printed over with some of the biggest names in fashion and art, such as Virgil Abloh, Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat.
The museum operates as a historical display of the evolution of sneaker designs starting all the way back in the 1950s.
According to exhibit records, the aftermath of World War II led to a great spike in sneaker production, leading many teens to wear the blank canvas shoes during the mid-20th century.
Along with the widespread production of markers and pen, “a teen craze for drawing on sneakers” quickly ensued.
As visitors turn the corner, the display cases hold some of the biggest shoe crazes of the 1960s and 1970s, featuring the iconic Peter Max.
The psychedelic artist struck a deal with major shoe distributor Randolph Rubber Company, creating one of the first artist collaborations of its kind. The shoes on display are a vibrant time capsule of its time with a mish-mash of bright fabric designs and textures.
One particular case is sectioned near the middle back wall of the exhibt. This case holds the Basquiat x Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Pez Dispenser Dinosaur (2021) collaboration, and just to the right is fellow 1980s New York City artist Keith Haring’s tribute collaboration with Zara.
The Keith Haring estate has made it their mission to licence the late artist’s work to companies willing to donate proceeds to the Keith Haring Foundation, an organization “supporting children in-need individuals affected by HIV/AIDS.”
Continue down the line and you’ll spot an eye-catching display of current day artist Aaron Fowler’s work titled Mesus sneaker and crown (2023). A deconstructed St. Louis Cardinals baseball cap is manipulated in order to “conjure the nails used in the crucifixion of Jesus.”
Next to this display of Fowler’s interpretation of Jesus’ ‘crown of thorns’ is a large pair of metallic shoes fit only for a giant. The words “AIR” can be read, which is said to be a direct “reference to Virgil Abloh”, who Fowler admired as colleagues in the world of art.
At the end of the exhibit, you should be able to answer the question: can art be shoes?
Art/Wear: Sneakers x Artists is on display at the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto through March 23, 2026. The Bata Shoe Museum is located at 327 Bloor St. West.
Resource: https://www.blogto.com/fashion_style/2024/10/bata-shoe-museum-art-wear/
