"Footwear Exhibition: A Point of Contact Between the Earth and People" organized by Footwear Sekizuka at Iwakura AA in Kyoto. Tracing the history of footwear through history and activities.
From Saturday, December 10th to Thursday, December 29th, 2022, the "Footwear Exhibition: A Point of Contact Connecting the Earth and People," a project by Sekizuka Footwear, will be held at Iwakura AA in Kyoto.
Based in Kyoto, Footwear Sekizuka has been proposing enjoyable footwear that blends seamlessly into modern life, with a free interpretation that transcends the boundaries between Japanese and Western clothing. To take the next step, they felt the need to understand the roots of footwear, leading to the holding of this exhibition.
With the cooperation of the Matsunaga Kimono Museum in Hiroshima Prefecture, this exhibition will borrow valuable footwear and display the history of footwear as it has integrated into daily life, work, and the environment over its long history and activities.
For the main visual, we asked Paris-based artist Philippe Weisbecker to create an illustration of footwear. His sensibility in depicting footwear conveys the intriguing appearance and shape of footwear as tools. The original illustrations will be on display at the venue, and products such as tote bags and hand towels will be available for sale in stores and online.
When we walk, we feel as if we are in contact with the ground, but in reality, we are connected to the earth through our shoes and footwear. We hope that you will take another look at footwear, a tool that connects people with the earth.
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Footwear Exhibition: A Point of Contact Between the Earth and People
Connecting Humans to Earth
Date: December 10th (Saturday) - December 29th (Thursday), 2022
Time: 13:00 - 18:00 (open every day during the exhibition)
Venue: Iwakura AA
Admission fee: 1,000 yen
Organizer: Sekizuka Footwear Sponsor: Matsunaga Hakimono Museum Exhibition Director: Shinji Sekizuka Main Visual: Philippe Weisbecker Venue Design: NEW DOMAIN (Takahiro Nagao, Kai Sato)
Graphic design: NEW DOMAIN (Ryosuke Nishino, Natsumi Higashi) Design and construction: SPROUT, NEW DOMAIN
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Footwear Sekizuka/Iwakura AA
I renovated a timber warehouse I found in a quiet area in the mountains north of Kyoto and set up my shop there. The shop has two rooms, each with a name and a purpose. "Iwakura AA" displays and sells items I have selected or had specially made for me, and "Footwear Sekizuka" is where I do my own work, designing, manufacturing and selling footwear. In a world where all sorts of things are happening, I will continue to work hard every day to be able to continue proposing unchanging, reliable products.
https://www.instagram.com/aa_sekizuka/
Footwear
Born in 1982, he began training as a footwear craftsman in Gion, Kyoto in 2007. In April 2020, he opened Hakimonosekizuka, where he designs, manufactures, and sells footwear all by himself. He is also responsible for everything from selecting materials and ingredients to training craftsmen and collecting historical materials on footwear. He explores both traditional and fashionable ideas and perspectives from archives and materials of the past, and proposes them to the world from his own unique perspective. https://hakimonosekizuka.com
Matsunaga Kimono Museum The Matsunaga Kimono Museum in Fukuyama City houses and exhibits many valuable materials inherited from the Japan Kimono Museum and the Japan Folk Toy Museum, as well as materials related to the production of geta, rush grass, and salt, which supported the industries of the Matsunaga region.
Philip Weisbecker
Born in 1942, he graduated from the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Decoratifs (Paris) in 1966. He moved to New York City in 1968 and began his career there. After working on numerous illustrations for American advertisements and editorials, he returned to France in 2006. He began creating artwork in earnest and has continued to exhibit in Europe, the United States, and Japan. In 2004, he stayed at Villa Kujoyama, an artist-in-residence program run by the Institut Français Japan. He has also worked extensively in Japan, winning awards both at home and abroad, including from JAGDA, NYADC, and Tokyo ADC. He is also responsible for the official poster for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
NEW DOMAIN
A design firm based in Kyoto. Its seven members work on projects, each making use of their own expertise and background. By engaging in mutual critique, they cross disciplines to find new methods and ways of thinking and implement them in their projects. Their main achievements include the design of university workshops, branding, package design, store design, exhibition composition, and participation in art fairs. http://newdomain.jp
This exhibition is a subsidized project by the Agency for Cultural Affairs' "ARTS for the future! 2" program.