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Design

Museum Offers a Stroll Through the History of Sneakers

Walk a mile in these historic shoes—metaphorically, of course—at the Brooklyn Museum.

The cultural influence and importance of sneakers throughout fashion history is abundant. Case in point: 150 pairs of the in-question kicks will be on display at from July 10 through October 14 for the Brooklyn Museum’s new exhibition The Rise of Sneaker Culture. The touring exhibit was originally displayed at Toronto’s BATA Shoe Museum, and was organized by the AFA (American Federation of Arts).

Divided into six sections of sneaker history, the exhibit takes you from the inception of rubber-soles to the cultural phenomena of Air Jordans, and through to the future with GE x Android’s Homme’s mission moon-boots. It features works from acclaimed shoe brands like Adidas, Nike, and Puma, but also from distinguished designers such as Kanye West, Tom Sachs, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, and Damien Hirst, among others.

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But The Rise of Sneaker Culture exhibit doesn’t consist of shoes alone, either. An excerpt from the documentary Just For Kicks, as well as photographs and design drawings, will paint the narrative history of sneakers’ technical progress and social relevance in a similar style as the museum's Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe show, which we covered last year.

Check out some of the seminal kicks in the pics below:

Click here to read more about The Rise of Sneaker Culture at the Brooklyn Museum.

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