Sculptural Sneakers

Designers and stylists today are drawn to neutral colors and experimental styles.

Words by

June 2, 2023

best new sneakers 01

ISPA Link, Nike

ISPA (Improvise, Scavenge, Protect, Adapt) Link is designed to be taken apart. “Our hope is that these ideas and aesthetics become normalized, accelerating our ability to imagine how shoes will continue to evolve in the future,” says Darryl Matthews, vice president of catalyst footwear product design at Nike.

 

Cardi B Club C V2, Reebok

The Club C V2 is one of the most lasting products of Cardi B’s four-year partnership with Reebok. Its dramatic proportions and oversized outsole lugs reflect Cardi B’s high-energy, exaggerated style, and bold personality.

best new sneakers 05
best new sneakers 02

Venus Comb, Murex Shell, Botter Paris with Reebok and HP

This concept from BOTTER and Reebok is based on a vintage Reebok Football silhouette infused with Murex seashell patterns. The shoe is manufactured with HP’s Multi Jet Fusion Technology.

 

Halo, EYTYS

EYTYS’s Halo silhouette is actually nothing like the angel’s glowing crown. With references to hiking and basketball footwear, the shoe is characterized by arrow-like arches along the sole and side of the shoe and a distinct square toe.

best new sneakers 06
best new sneakers 08

Pyro Runner, Axel Arigato

The futuristic Pyro was developed with the help of VR footwear expert Finn Rush Taylor and molded from EVA—a lightweight, bio-based rubber alternative. Its fluid lines, contours, and perforations highlight its organic shape.

 

Tossu, CAMPERLAB

This zero-waste shoe was designed under creative director Achilles Ion Gabriel. Named after the Finnish slang word for “slipper,” the caged-style design can be repurposed as playground floors at the end of its time as a shoe.

best new sneakers 04

Photos courtesy of Nike, Reebok, Pablo Latorre, EYTYS, Axel Arigato, CAMPERLAB

A version of this article originally appeared in Sixtysix Issue 10 with the headline “Sculptural Sneakers.” Subscribe today.

A magazine cover