This post originally appeared on ArchDaily.by Karissa Rosenfield
FLAMES / Zaha Hadid. Image Courtesy of United Nude
Zaha Hadid, Fernando Romero, and Ben Van Berkel are making headlines alongside two renowned artists for their 3-D printed reinventions of the high heel. A collaborative vision spearheaded by United Nude and 3-D Systems, the highly anticipated project was unveiled yesterday at the “Re-Inventing Shoes” exhibition at Milan Design Week.
Each sculptural heel was 3-D printed using SelectiveLaser Sintering in a hard Nylon and all-new soft Rubber material, making a “fully functioning” shoe. Only up to 50 pairs of each will be sold.
AMMONITE / Fernando RomeroAMMONITE / Fernando Romero. Image Courtesy of United Nude
“This shoe uses the most cutting-edge 3-D printing technology both in design and execution, but the result is a shoe that could have been an object found in nature, a delicate fossil that has been buried on the bottom of the ocean for millennia.”
UNX2 / UNStudioUNX2 / Ben Van Berkel - UNStudio. Image Courtesy of United Nude
“We were particularly interested in the kinds of images the shoe could create, both when static and when in motion. The UNX2 shoe creates patterns of movement and produces a dynamic form of image-making through motion.”
YOUNG Shoe / Michael Young StudioYOUNG Shoe / Michael Young Studio. Image Courtesy of United Nude“Working on this project has allowed us a unique opportunity to explore and expand within a rare dimension. Combined with our own extensive experience in 3-D technology we have created a refreshing approach to the way a shoe may be can be perceived.”
ILABO / Ross LovegroveILABO / Ross Lovegrove. Image Courtesy of United Nude“I have used this project to establish a moment where physical innovation in materials density and layered matrix node structuring, are coalesced to enhance the sensuality of the female form whilst remaining clearly technological.”
FLAMES / Zaha HadidFLAMES / Zaha Hadid. Image Courtesy of United Nude“The sculptural sensibility and experimentation of Hadid’s architectural language and United Nude’s expertise In manufacturing the most innovative designs has embodied the shoe with the essence of fire – delicate and ephemeral, yet compelling and dynamic.”
News via United Nude
Cite: Rosenfield, Karissa."Zaha Hadid’s 3D Printed Flame Heels Among 5 Designs to Re-Invent the Shoe" 15 Apr 2015. ArchDaily. Accessed 20 Apr 2015.
Zaha Hadid’s 3D Printed Flame Heels Among 5 Designs to Re-Invent the Shoe originally appeared on ArchDaily, the most visited architecture website in April 2015.