We all love a good pair of shoes and know they have to be on point because sneakers can either make or break an outfit. With that, Fil-Am and Chicago based visual artist, Louis De Guzman teams up with footwear company, New Balance for another version of the 574 sneaker. His first reimagined 574 design, which released in September 2020 was in support of a "charitable Collaboraid initiative in effort to aid in the recovery from COVID-19 through sneaker culture." Now, Louis is back for another round and is paying tribute to his Filipina mother calling this 574 colorway 'Ma Divina.'
According to Louis, the New Balance 574 LDG Ma Divina is a "case study of applying the inspiration [his mother] to a classic and reimagined silhouette." His mother participated in local craft shows and applied her creativity to floral arrangements and DIY trinkets. Louis attributes his attention to detail and design to his mother as her own traits allowed him to broaden his perspective.
"These moments, and her discipline, are a driving inspiration to create work that aims to evoke emotion."
LOUIS DE GUZMAN
The colorway pallet according to the blog, Sole Collector consists of purple and blue suede overlay panels with a bright orange 'N' branding on the sides. Louis also adds artwork like graphics which are printed on the insoles.
The sneakers are set to release this week after the pair was released exclusively in Chicago over the weekend. Others will soon be able to cop these as it'll hit racks at Footlocker.com and ChampsSports.com and at selected stores Thursday, March 24 for $85.
Check out the behind the scenes to the pop-up installation debuting the 574 LDG Ma Divina in Chicago at the South Gate Footlocker location.
Cover Photo Credit: Louis De Guzman Instagram
Recording artist and Songwriter Kiyomi comes together with Shoe Palace and New Balance to help celebrate and share her thoughts on Unity. She is featured in the diverse Shoe Palace x New Balance 327 Unity Pack campaign that dropped online this week.
The Unity Pack is a collaboration that comes together to promote and celebrate unity. One iteration of the design on the heritage silhouette showcases a mesh of colors, showing that it can be a beautiful thing when we come together. In a video for the campaign, Kiyomi touches on "Inclusiveness" and how it means to be acknowledged and welcomed no matter the differences. The campaign is a direct reference to that statement.
If you want to take a closer look at The 327 Unity Pack, it is now available for purchase online at the Shoe Palace Website.
Cover Photo Courtesy of Shoe Palace Instagram
Artist and overall creative Rich Tu just debuted his collaboration with UNIQLO USA. The collab is for the 15th anniversary of their SOHO Flagship store. He has created two customizable t-shirt designs for this particular collab. These designs were inspired by his love for New York and his FilipinX heritage. But this isn't the first time Rich has collaborated with such big companies.
In 2019 he collaborated with NIKE for the "First Gen" Air Max 270 Reacts. Aesthetically they were also designed with the thought of his heritage, inspired by First Generation Immigrants. The colors represent oxidized metal which is a common sight in developing nations like the Philippines.
"As part of a special NYC x NikeByYou drop, I collaborated with Nike on these Nike Air Max 270 Reacts, which were inspired by the First Gen Burden podcast. A few hundred special pairs were sold, and proceeds were donated to ACLU to support immigrants rights."
-Rich Tu
You can now purchase Rich's collaboration with UNIQLO at the SOHO Flagship store.
About Rich Tu:
Rich Tu is the Vice President of Digital Design for the MTV Entertainment Group at ViacomCBS. Also, he hosts the Webby Honoree podcast First Generation Burden, which focuses on intersectionality and diversity within the creative industry.
Rich is a first generation Filipino-American and award-winning artist residing in Brooklyn, NY. He is a graduate of SVA’s Illustration as Visual Essay program and received the ADC Young Guns award, which recognizes the world’s best creatives under the age of 30. Creatively, his focus is on emerging audiences and energetic brands that benefit from an eclectic and unique point of view.
Rich’s clients and collaborators include The New York Times, The New Yorker, Business Week, Alfa Romeo, Bombay Sapphire, G-Shock, NIKE, Adidas, Converse, American Express, NPR, NorthFace Purple Label, Coca-Cola, Verizon, Skype, Fuse TV, and Hamilton The Musical, among others. Also, he has exhibited at galleries and festivals in New York, Los Angeles, Berlin, as well as the SCOPE Miami festival, during Miami’s Art Basel week.
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Cover Photo Courtesy of Rich Tu Instagram Shot by: Geoff Sean Levy
