This project is a 14 week design exploration that focus on the story telling of young adult women living in North Hollywood who want to take up running as a hobby.
3 months or 300 miles. That is how long expensive running shoes typically last before falling apart. Why not design how this degradation occurs?
From The Source Material
Aqua dream
Neon Jewl
Rebel Pink
Glitter Girl
Loud Lilac
Sunset Hour
Duchess
Blush Out
Setting the Scene
Going on multiple field trips to soak in the culture of our target destination is one of the most entertaining parts of product design. By starting in NoHo I collected invaluable insights into the culture of NoHo.
My field group and I interviewed locals and learned about the struggles between incoming gentrification and the local population that is fighting back.
Setting
A burned down theater in the center of NoHo that is still a colorful icon and community touch-point
Time
Friday the 13th is a popular time for getting cheap tattoos. Here a line goes down the block as girls wait their turn in the blistering heat.
Cast
In the tattoo line we meet Gabby, a colorful personality with whimsical fashion tastes
World Building
Spending a day with Gabby gives us a look behind the gentrification curtain that NoHo is known for and see the colorful culture her friends live for.
Costume
The fashion styles of these Noho locals are a statement against cookie cutter gentrification and this fashion is used to set them apart
Archetype : Beauty Fighter
On one blistering field trip to NoHo on Friday the 13th, my field group and I stumble across an interesting phenomena. A line of girls going around the block aged 18 to 20 all waiting in 90 degree weather for spontaneous Friday the 13 tattoos.
We started chatting with Gabby and her group of friends who became our inspiration. We learned of a community of locals who fight conformity with fierce fashion and bold celebrations of youth.
What is Gabby Buying?
Niche, glittery, and overzealous. We sat down with Gabby and took a look at her closet. Populated with femm rave culture brands such as Dollskill and Adikas gave us some insight into extravagance without a cause.
The shoes in particular are statements that generally favor retro inspired looks tied in with flashy functionalism.
FIERCLY DISPLAYING VOCAL IDENTITY, OUTRAGEOUS COMRADERY
FIERCLY DISPLAYING VOCAL IDENTITY, OUTRAGEOUS COMRADERY
Gabby wants to stay fit and spend her time representing her community. Running is the best way to stay visible within her community and gain a productive hobby! If only there were running shoes which fit her style...
Ideation
Combining Brand, form, and idea
My Process goes a little something like this: First I mind map like crazy and let the hand run free. From there I choose the top three ideas and begin sketching. With this project I defined my ideation directions as questions Gabby might ask when designing a running shoe. Then I combine the best ideas from there and sketch out more refined versions and continue to boil down until something halfway usable is filtered through.
Round 2
Starting to conceptualize here…If a shoe falls apart anyway, what if we do it on purpose, and what if the parts that fall away reveal a shining interior?
Final Direction
Made to degrade
Using organic structure to guide stress lines, this concept guides a beginner’s running shoe to fall away on purpose so that the more Gabby runs the more the shoe transforms into something she may re-purpose into street fashion shoes.
Now for the fun part
Now for the fun part
Building a product with branding, story, and style
Building a holistic Ecosystem
Since this shoe falls apart, we will need a store front to provide the next generation of running shoes for our hero. Here is a quick look at that ecosystem and some food for thought for future development of this brand.
