Zaha Hadid Erects Lacoste

Last fall, New Yorkers were bowled over by the giant white spaceship that landed in Central Park. It was a Day the Earth Stood Still moment, and no less arresting once the doors opened to reveal a collaborative art exhibit from a variety of the world's most current, avant-garde experimentalists. Funded by Chanel, "Mobile Art" stood for just over a month and gave visitors a taste of whatever the MoMA and New Museum didn't already show, as well as New York's strongest taste thus far of the artistic offerings of Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid. That is, until Lacoste stepped in (literally).

Other than “sample sale,” no other pair of words tickles us quite like “limited edition,” so when the two polar extremes Lacoste and Zaha Hadid jumped into the ring, we knew nothing but the most extraordinary result would ring the winning bell. As with Hadid’s characteristic design aesthetic, the shoes had to be fluid and organic, but embody the intrigue and sensuality of texture. The whole project began with Hadid’s reinterpretation of the archetypal crocodile logo, iterated by a series of fluid etchings, a movement that would shape the entire shoe. To preserve sleekness and solidity, the shoe lacks any form of conventional security, instead relying on a coiled strap that undulates up the calf, stopping at the ankle for men and continuing to just below the knee for women, moving sinuously as the wearer walks. The virtually invisible sole is marked with points where pressure is exerted by the foot and so thin the foot is always in constant contact with the ground.

Naturally the footwear of choice of those for whom ultramodern is the new vintage, we expect to see these in major motion during New York Fashion Week; however, getting your hands on feet in a pair might require a bit more travel—a trip we could definitely justify considering many of the venues are destinations in and of themselves. Find the Hadids at Colette in Paris, Dover Street Market in London, 10 Corso Como in Milan and, after braving Rock Center’s tourist hordes, the Lacoste store at 608 5th Avenue.