Balenciaga dedicates its parade to Ukraine
How much does it cost to make a garment in Spain?
Dirty
sneakers
.
Worn
sneakers
.
Broken
sneakers
.
These are some of the keys to the latest
Balenciaga sneakers
that have set social networks on fire: you just have to see the number of passionate comments that populate the publications that include the new campaign led by
Demna
.
Because striking, it is:
the shoes appear, indeed, dirty, worn and even broken
.
The direct effect was as clear as the comments like 'spend so much money on shoes that look like this'.
So far, all very obvious.
But there are a few (slightly deeper) reads to be had in the wake of this release.
The
Balenciaga Paris Sneakers
are "a
renewed classic
that reinterprets timeless mid-century athletics and casual, in black, white or red with a white rubber sole and toe," they say in the launch statement.
However, it does keep some of that
"aged" finish and "rough edges that give it a worn look."
Thus, the canvas shoe is versioned in
high boots, low shoes and even in mules,
leaving the heel in the air;
different options that, in reality, are not an absolute novelty, since it is not the first time, nor will it be the last, that worn-out sneakers will appear in shop windows.
However, the presentation photos of the Balenciaga shoes are another story.
DR
"The campaign shows
extremely worn, marked and dirty shoes,
" they explain from the firm about the images captured by
Leopold Duchemin.
And that's when they reveal their final intention: "These still lifes suggest that
Paris slippers are made to wear for a lifetime
."
Voilà:
appeal to responsible consumption
and long-term investments.
The passage of time wreaking havoc on the object;
experiences of all kinds.
The crystallization of use
raised to the nth power.
To the business, too, since a
"limited edition of 100 pairs of destroyed sneakers" will be available on the Balenciaga website
both in black and white.
You no longer have to experience all those concerts, outings and trips for the appointments to be reflected in the shoes.
Is there a veiled criticism of
how immediacy is consuming us
to the point of wanting to skip all those things and that the life of the clothes is already on?
Maybe.
It all depends on how intense you want your thought to be.
Leopold Duchemin
The discussion about the appropriateness or inappropriateness of these shoes has not been long in coming, as has an argument that Demna's firm has had to face on several occasions: the
glamorization of poverty
.
It happened with bags that looked like garbage bags or bags in which refugees carry their belongings, as well as with pieces that collect stains and tears between the fabric.
The reasoning of those who accuse the signing of this process goes through how, once again in history,
the upper and wealthy classes seem to have the prerogative of being able to take any element and use it as they please with impunity
, without taking into account that this it can be the day-to-day life of the most disadvantaged people.
In this fact intervenes a social action that prevails almost since man is a man: the
same behavior, gesture or aesthetics
carried out by a group that is not within the norm can
generate exclusion
, while that same behavior, gesture or aesthetics perpetrated by the wealthy classes or that are within the normative (or even on the rise at that time), is
a reason for applause.
Surely a few musical examples come to mind, but this is a complaint that has also been repeated in other areas and that affects, among others, the Gypsy People regularly (what is wrong with them is right with others) .
These are just some of the interpretations that can be made (and are already being made) about the latest viral phenomenon in fashion.
Marketing strategy, reflection on consumption, exoticization of exclusion... There are many components.
The result, a very clear one.
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