London based bespoke sneaker maker Helen Kirkum Studio, worked on a number of custom sneakers for our AW20 No Recourse to Public Funds collection, showcased during London Fashion Fashion Mens in January 2020.
The AW20 collection was created working in partnership with Adidas, to coincide with Adidas’ celebration of 50 years of the iconic Adidas Superstar, all models wore Adidas Superstars, with a select few wearing custom pairs made in collaboration with Helen Kirkum.
Kirkum works creating sneakers from waste materials, upcycling shoes to re-make with new combinations of textures and fabrics. For this collaboration, we chose to work on pairs of Adidas Superstars, to align with the 50th anniversary. Helen created three custom pairs using second-hand Adidas Superstar sneakers that form the base of these reconstructed shoes, using Superstars donated through the new Adidas Infinite Play Initiative. For the re-worked elements of the shoes, Helen utilised deadstock fabric scraps, offcuts and waste materials from the AW20 collection development. Waste materials from tents, the toy industry, and samples and scraps are cut and collaged onto each shoe. Each shoe in a pair is different, and each pair is playfully crafted using a variety of recycled materials.
The pairs were made in Helen’s London based studio, including a sample childrenswear pair, which were later featured in our SS21, All Our Children collection campaign imagery.
Our collaboration Superstars were later nominated within the Fashion category of The Design Museum’s annual Beazley Designs of the Year for 2020, and featured within the exhibition of nominees. Whilst also being on display at the Adidas Superstar 50th Anniversary party in London, hosted by Adidas.
