1860-65, Thomas Dutton and Thorowgood. Running Shoe. Northampton Museums and Art Gallery, Northampton, U.K.
There’s only one piece of apparel that’s more ubiquitous than jeans today, and that is, of course, sneakers. People love them, salivate over them and, hell, have actually been killed over them. Some have commanded obscene prices, going north of $100,000 for a rare pair. For the hard-core collector, sneakers are as serious as a heart attack after a game of H–O–R–S–E. But while it may seem that the sneaker’s exploding popularity as the globe’s shoe of choice is fairly recent, its roots go back more than century. That’s one takeaway from the Brooklyn Museum’s show “The Rise of Sneaker Culture,” a history of sneaks opening July 10 that features 150 examples dating from the 1860s to the present. The show follows the evolution of sneakers from their birth in sports (track and field, basketball) to their current role as status symbol and urban icon. Shoes from Adidas, Converse, Nike and Prada trace their transition from the street to the runway. Whether you’re a footwear fetishist or not, this is one show bound to provoke a shoegasm.
RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the Brooklyn Museum in NYC
