Sinela: Carmen

The Carmen shoes of the Sinela brand for the Düsseldorf GDS Trade Fair  September 2007 (see post Shoes for Carmen) are a play on the pointe-shoe from ballet, only in leather. From a straight-on perspective it is almost exactly like a pointe-shoe – the ballet slipper shape, the low, box-shaped toe. The shoe is unadorned except for two slim leather straps closer to the front, tied together with a piece of pink string that goes well with the silvery-green tone of the leather. The surprise is in the side view: the shoe rests on an enormous narrow wedge (which may even be transparent, but with my computer monitor it’s impossible to tell).

The cool thing is that the edge is reversed, or, plainly speaking, backwards. The high, curved end of the wedge is directly under the toe, making standing on it impossible even in theory, unless…..one stands on the toes, just like in pointe-shoes. The only other detail is a bit of green and red fringe all along the top of the wedge, where it attaches to the shoe. And that’s it. Maybe Sinela designers saw Carmen as an eternal dancer, balancing precariously on the edge? Would be nice to know what you think!