Melissa Shoes
The collaboration between Zaha Hadid and Brazilian shoe brand, Melissa was an opportunity to work directly with the fashion industry to explore the possibilities of a new media. To express the studio’s characteristic sense of fluidity, the natural starting point was the organic contours of the body – this inspired the idea of the shoe in flux, coming to life when worn rather than conceived as a static object in a window display. The shoes emerge from the ground and climb asymmetrically up the foot and leg in a sweeping, elegant motion. They adhere like a second skin, with a lightness of touch that blurs the boundary between body and object.
To develop the product and successfully translate the design to the production line, the studio used advanced digital modelling techniques. The ergonomic qualities of the shoes were refined through rapid prototyping and the fluidity of the design lent itself well to Melissa’s plastic injection mould technology. To make the experience for the user seamless and consistent, the packaging and branding of the shoes shares the same fluidity and seamless expression as the design.
