Destructive design: Dyeing shoes on the catwalk

London – Experimental footwear designer Benjamin John Hall took a hammer to his shoes at a live fashion event, where he showcased new methods of dyeing shoes through destruction.

Hall was inspired by the 1960s Destructivist art movement where objects were destroyed during live performances. For his show, Hall made a series of white boots that encased black dye. Hall either released the dye onto the shoes or – in one case – broke the porcelain tip of a pair of avant-garde wedges to release the ink beneath, which then seeped onto the shoes. For Hall, the show was an exploration of design processes that occur after shoes have been produced.

'Unlike the Destructivist's art that cannot actually exist by its very nature, Benjamin’s shoes do live on in their newly tainted forms,' reads a statement from the studio.

The show reveals how Sinistry, our Inspire on the current exploration of darkness in design, can be translated into a visceral live event. For more on brands exploring the darker side, read The Polarity Paradox Macrotrend.