Jul.2, 2013
Dutch fashion designer Iris van Herpen showcased her new collection "Wilderness Embodied" at this year's Paris Fashion Week. The new collection features 12 pairs of 3D printed shoes designed by Dutch architect and shoe designer Rem D Koolhaas, Creative Director and Founder of United Nude. Inspired by nature, the shoe design incorporates intricate lattices that wind around the foot, mirroring the growth of tree roots.
The shoes are 3D printed with the multi-material Stratasys Objet Connex and Objet Eden 3D Printers. According to Stratasys, the shoes were 3D printed with 16-micron layers with the Stratasys PolyJet 3D printing technology, using rigid black (VeroBlack) and white (VeroWhite) opaque materials.
"For me, fashion has always been about setting your own boundaries and making a statement," commented van Herpen. "This time around, Rem and I wanted to create something that echoed the beauty and wilderness of the natural world, so we decided to use the technological capabilities of 3D printing to bring this concept to life through a pair of shoes."
This is the first time Koolhaas, Creative Director and Founder of United Nude, an architecture inspired shoe company, has produced and showcased an entire 3D printed shoe on the catwalk. Koolhaas hopes this collaboration will inspire shoe designers of the future to unleash their own creativity and explore new approaches previously unthinkable.
"I'm thrilled with the results, they're stunning and original. Iris is very dramatic with her concepts and the shapes she wanted were only possible with 3D printing – they are almost like a sculpture on your feet, mimicking nature," said Koolhaas. "Working with Stratasys also enabled us to quickly test the shoes during the design process and adjust our concepts for optimal function and form. So it was easy to make changes and get exactly what we wanted.
"Once we locked down the perfect design, we printed 12 pairs of fashion shoes in less than a week."
Images: Iris van Herpen
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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