In These Shoes ??

[Tuesday Afternoon]

We've seen many ugly shoes in our day, but a new pair dubbed "Scary Beautiful" is definitely the most treacherous footwear we've ever seen. The massive heels appear backwards on the foot, so the wearers feet point straight down the back, as if in ballet shoes, with their shin leaning against the front "heel" end of the design to balance. The shoes are a collaboration between artist Leanie van der Vyver and Dutch shoe designer René van den Berg, and serve as a commentary on today's impossible standards of beauty.

Van der Vyver is South African, and recently graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam. We spotted "Crazy Beautiful" on her website, cargocollective.com, and reached out to her for the inside scoop.

"After working in fashion for seven years, and therefore being well aware of the manipulation images in fashion suffer for a perfect result, I still compare myself to them and other current beauty ideals," Van der Vyver told Yahoo! Shine exclusively. "My frustration with my own inability to overcome these feelings of inadequacy was what brought 'Scary Beautiful' into fruition. The shoes formed part of my graduation project that was a result of my thesis. The conclusion of my thesis investigation was that people are not satisfied with what they look like, and that perfection, according to the beauty and fashion standards, has reached a climax. Humans are playing God by physically and metaphorically perfecting themselves. Beauty is currently at an all time climax, allowing this project to explore what lies beyond perfection. Scary Beautiful challenges current beauty ideals by inflicting an unexpected new beauty standard."

A model wearing the Scary Beautiful shoes. Photo by Lyall CoburnUnsurprisingly, Van der Vyver's "Scary Beautiful" shoes were nominated for a design prize at Gerrit Rietveld Academie. Jury members Barbara Visser, visual artist and Xander Karskens, and curator of De Hallen had this to say about the shoes:

"The object created by Leanie expands the concept of a shoe into multiple new meanings. The beautifully made leather object is accompanied by a video registration of a girl wearing it. One observes the design forcing the wearer to develop a new way of walking, leaning forward while refining a painfully fragile balance. The jury applauds the way aesthetics, ergonomics and prosthesis merge into an awkward choreography. The craftsmanship and strong conceptual way of designing also show in another work, a ceramic tea set in which reference is made to a building in South Africa. Leanie succeeds in translating political consciousness into form and is considered by the jury to be a meaningful future designer."

more at link:
http://shine.yahoo.com/the-thread-how-to/scariest-shoes-time-173900092.html

[mysuzuki2]

1. Tose aren't shoes, they're stilts.

[NYC_SKP]

2. To me: proof that fashion is an expression of oppression of women.

more than an expression, but an overt exercise in oppression.

And that it can be called high art and instructive toward future fashion is reprehensible.

Fascinating design, disgusting tradition.

[pipi_k]

9. What I don't understand though...

is why so many women happily...gleefully...subject themselves to the oppression.

And I'm not just talking about shoes or other items of oppressive clothing.

Fingernails...I have a friend who grew her fingernails long enough that it was difficult for her to open up a can of soda, even.

Why? What is the point?

I dunno...maybe it's me. I keep my nails fairly short...no polish.

I wear loose, comfy clothing.

Comfortable (translation: ugly) shoes.

Totally not into fashion at all.

Just don't get the attraction.

[MiddleFingerMom]

3. In THOSE shoes???

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[frogmarch]

4. arthropod feet!

eek! :-O

[bluesbassman]

5. I stepped up on the platform, the man gave me the news, he said, you must be joking son...

Where did you get those shoes? Where did you get those shoes?

[Lady Freedom Returns]

6. No way in...maybe in hell since you are supposed to be punished there

Oh, they are ugly too!

[AsahinaKimi]

7. No way.. No How...

I don't want to look like an Imperial stalker....

[HopeHoops]

8. Didn't the Spanish Inquisition use those to get women to confess to fraudulent charges?

[Quantess]

10. Those look uncomfortable!

[Redlo Nosrep]

11. Looks Like Something Lady Gag Me Will Snap Up

One of the perks of retirement (at least for me) was donating all my unopened pantyhose packages and dress heels to charity. Freedom!

This "artistic statement" is so far beyond ugly, it beggars the mind.

[KamaAina]

13. Lady Gaga has in fact expressed interest.

She also happens to be one of the very few glammed-up celebrities who possesses actual talent.

[lumpy]

12. Could anything be more stupid than the so-called shoes?

What ever happened to sanity in this country. Decadence in the extreme.

[sakabatou]

14. How does a woman walk in those?!

[nolabear]

15. I like 'em.

Not as shoes, of course. But that's the point. They're impossible as shoes, impossible as a human standard of beauty, force a new way of doing a basic human thing, and give us something to think about. Should they be anything other than art or costume? Nope. But they sure are interesting.