Wearables— “Root”

Eisenman Sandals // Split Platform Boots // Truss Platform Sandals // Batwing Boots

The Root Series features a collection of footwear designs. Yeh Design Lab’s interest in shoemaking stems from familiarity and intrigue. While shoemaking shares some tools and skills with woodworking, contributing to a sense of familiarity, some unique aspects of shoemaking continue to captivate us.

One of the most intriguing aspects is the process of designing the upper on the shoe last—the mold that creates the space for the foot—and transferring the pattern onto paper and then leather. The simplest pattern for closed-toe shoes is the “pump,” a style often seen on classic high heels with a cutout approaching the cleavage of the toes. It is considered the simplest because it can be made using a single flat piece of material. However, when a design encloses the instep of the foot, creating a three-dimensional upper requires splicing pieces of material together, forming them, or a combination of both. Once the upper material is sewn with the lining, the process of “lasting” can begin. Lasting involves methodically pulling the upper and lining tightly over the last. This process typically includes inserting toe and heel caps, which are activated by water and heat to mold to the last and harden, protecting the foot. Special pliers are used to grab the end of the material, pull, twist, fold it under the last, and hammer in cut nails. A shoemaker must be skilled enough to ensure the tiny pleats are evenly distributed, especially around tight curves like the toe and heel, and experienced enough to determine the direction of pulling and twisting to ensure the leather conforms to, rather than tents over, the concave areas of the last. Additionally, the shoemaker must understand how leather will stretch when orienting the cutting dies or templates.

Two main factors contribute to irregularities in the elasticity of leather. First, leather is flattened from animal skin, and intensely three-dimensional areas, such as around the legs, have a propensity to move out of their flattened state. Second, the animal’s underbelly has more fat, causing variations in cellulose density.

For Yeh Design Lab, the necessity for understanding the source and processing of raw materials stems from both the practicality of mastering the skill and curiosity. For instance, cutting through tropical hardwoods such as Padauk, Purple Heart, or Teak can result in warped and unusable pieces due to tensions released when severing the invisible “tendon” formed by the tree’s growth pattern. Working with leather, sourced from livestock, evokes complex emotions and internal dialogues during the creation process.

For example, the act of cutting through leather could seem violent when parting an animal skin that has already been violated once by being transformed into a flat sheet of material. Unfinished upper components of the shoes often go through a strangely unrecognizable stage, oscillating between logical symbols like hieroglyphs, appearing alive, inanimate, or fetish-like. The making of the Batwing Boots was beautiful yet frightening, and we found that cowhides made into basketball leather (see A4 Bag) are simultaneously beautiful and violent, resembling life and death.

The French philosopher Georges Bataille theorized that true knowledge and beauty are found when boundaries are crossed and taboos are violated. To him, transgression is closely linked to violence and beauty. Furthermore, eroticism is not merely about sexual activity but a profound experience blurring the boundaries between life and death, the sacred and the profane. He saw eroticism as a form of transgression, where societal norms and personal boundaries are crossed, leading to a deeper understanding of existence.

While we didn’t intend to theorize about our work and actions, we generally agreed with Bataille. Before we fully understood his ideas, we tried to capture and express these thoughts and feelings through our photographic work, presented and discussed in the talk “Nonnons,” mentioned in the introduction to the Frame Series. Our photographic work is sprinkled throughout all three wearable categories, and we invite you to spot it.

Special thanks to Mauricio Osorio, the mentor and the master shoemaker at Western Costume, Kevork Kalaidjian of International Lasts for his generosity of mentoring and using the shop, and Celine Legey-Salisian, a founder of SiZif Shoes, for her trust in commissioning the design of the brand’s first collection.