MoMA’s Next Canvas Is Converse
Are Converse Chuck Taylors art? A prankster poised this question last year when he left his beaten-up Chucks on the floor of New York's Guggenheim gallery, prompting visitors to scrutinize the shoes as if they were a modern masterpiece, as captured in a viral clip.
The definitive answer comes from MoMA, which weighed in by creating its own Converse.
New York’s most famous modern-art museum created six versions of the All Star LGCY HI, a premium take on Chucks that recreates the shoe’s original shape.
MoMA didn’t change the outside of the Converse — or so it initially seems — instead demonstrating its artfulness through color combos like a lilac pink upper matched to red laces and a deep brown pair balanced by a golden yellow sole and laces. And as with all the gallery’s most popular merch, the MoMA logo features prominently, this time embroidered in white onto the shoe’s heel.
The biggest update is even more visible, yet hidden beneath the surface: all of the shoes uppers are entirely made of recycled material, claims a stamp on the inside.
While MoMA regularly updates its merch shop with everything from limited-edition bathrobes to co-branded New Era caps, MoMA sneakers are a rarity. The last notable MoMA sneaker was a 2020 Vans collection, preceded by a far more hyped three-part Nike x Virgil Abloh x MoMA collaboration. This release offers a rare opportunity to pair MoMA sneakers with a MoMA tote, but it’ll be tough.
This collaboration releases on March 20 only in Japan. That’s because these shoes were created with Converse Japan, a separate entity from Nike-owned Converse operated by Japanese investment company Itochu. But given that Nike partnered with MoMA on socks not so long ago, perhaps official MoMA Nikes aren’t so far off.
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