PRAGMATIC INNOVATION WAS A TOP 5 FINALIST IN THE “MELISSA NEXT” SHOE DESIGN COMPETITION

DATE: 2021

“Pragmatic Innovation” is inspired by the functionality and appeal of architecture and furniture design. In these areas, while a designer is free to experiment and manipulate silhouettes, they are also limited in having to accommodate comfort and functionality. Compromises and adjustments always must be made when designing products that are meant to have a purpose besides aesthetics.

As a fashion designer my goal is to translate concepts into physical garments and to challenge the boundaries of what is entrancing and sculptural whilst still being functional and comfortable to the wearer.

Gerd Lange, a 20th century furniture designer, often pushed these limits by designing furniture that was new and modern but still appealing for people to sit on. Architect Frank Ghery is another example of this type of designer. His works are extraordinary and shocking but as an architect he is still subject to basic architecture principles of durability, utility and comfort. Designers must often pose themselves the question: How much excess is too much excess and at what point does focusing too much on functionality become boring and overdone?

This is what I hope to achieve with Pragmatic Innovation - a shoe that looks sculptural and entrancing while still appealing to the wearer. In this design, every piece serves a purpose. The platform and vamp of the shoe creates stability through an unusual shape and the transparent heel alludes to a floating piece within the shoe. Every detail is carefully crafted while walking the tightrope between pragmatism and creative innovation.”