Traveling shoe exhibit on display in Sarasota. Here's what you'll find
Traveling shoe exhibit on display in Sarasota
FOX 13 photojournalist Barry Wong shows us a traveling exhibition at the Sarasota Art Museum, "Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks," which looks at the past, present and future of footwear.
SARASOTA, Fla. - A traveling exhibition at the Sarasota Art Museum, "Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks", looks at the past, present and future of footwear.
"I am a shoe historian. I am consistently looking to the past, but for 25 years, I have noticed that things that people do in the past sometimes only come to fruition decades later," Bata Shoe Museum Director & Senior Curator Elizabeth Semmelhack said. "I thought it would be interesting to do an exhibition focused on what’s happening now and to think about how that’s going to impact us in the future."
The exhibition is broken down into four sections. The first looks at the history of footwear. Visitors can see many of the early tools used in handmaking shoes.
This section of the "Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks" exhibit highlights the history of footwear.
The second section highlights innovation, which showcases evolving materials and designs.
This section of the "Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks" exhibit highlights innovation in the world of footwear.
The third section focuses on sustainability.
This section of the "Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks" exhibit focuses on sustainability.
"We make 20 billion pairs of shoes a year, which is enough for three new pairs of shoes for every person on the planet," Semmelhack said.
This section of the "Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks" exhibit looks at transformative ideas for the future of footwear.
The fourth section looks at transformative ideas, which highlights new ideas. The exhibit has around 70 shoes, including a famous pair from the world of movies, specifically the auto-lacing Nike shoes from the 1989 film "Back to the Future Part II."
"People went crazy for this," Semmelhack said. "However, those were simply movie props. They actually couldn't auto-lace without being plugged into a power source."
Semmelhack says Nike designers spent years trying to turn the futuristic shoe concept into reality, and in the 2010s, a power source small and powerful enough was found. Nike released 89 pairs of the MAG in 2015. They were auctioned to raise money for Michael J. Fox’s foundation.
Nike released 89 pairs of the MAG in 2015, inspired by the film "Back to the Future: Part II."
"They are perfect illustration of how you can have an idea that literally cannon be realized for decades," Semmelhack said.
One idea or concept that Semmelhack believes will change the course of footwear involves essentially growing your own shoes at home.
"You would sprinkle into this mold mushroom spores, add water, and then overnight, mushroom leather shoes would emerge. You could wear them during the day. You could compost them at night," Semmelhack said.
This illustration on display in Sarasota shows the concept of essentially growing your own shoes at home.
The traveling exhibition, which made its regional debut in Sarasota, will be on display until May 4.
"What I hope people experience when they come see this exhibition is, one: wow, I didn't know I could learn this much from footwear. Two: there's a lot of incredible things being done right now. And three: what am I choosing to wear and why," Semmelhack said.
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The Source: Information for this story was gathered by FOX 13 photojournalist Barry Wong.
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