Sebastian Durham

Gucci Flashtrek (floral, silk)

silk, canvas, silk and cotton thread

Gucci Flashtrek (with crystals) (porcelain)

porcelain, stoneware glaze

Replica sneakers made of hand embroidered and hand stitched silk, hand painted porcelain. I have sampled an eighteenth century pattern from Marie Antoinette’s book of fabric swatches, and a 1700’s blue and white pattern from Europe’s first porcelain house- using historical reference to gesture to luxury history, Versailles and aristocracy as icons of wealth, virtue as a luxe signifier and embroidery/porcelain as mediums rich with time and skill, shifting the point of luxury from logo or monogram to investment effort and valuable material, gesturing to high class patronage of artistry, the collectable and the collection. Historic weight of white in luxury objects- impossible cleanliness, pristineness, potential for decay and destruction- but continued purity. Inutile objects, things with no use beyond decoration and display, display of wealth- the ability to own something with no use, but with beautiful visual and material value. The contemporary designer shoe- a blatant symbol of wealth of money- also the luxury industry on a global scale. Meissen’s (the afore-mentioned porcelain manufacturer) appropriation of Asian ceramic designs- the interrelated relationship of East and West, the importance of Asia to both historic and contemporary luxury markets (silk, the silk road, global consumerism).