Birkenstock and Opening Ceremony are known for coming up with creative spins on cult-favourite shoes. See: The glittery Arizona sandals and the neon-hued Zurich sandals that resulted when the two brands collaborated in 2018 and 2019, respectively. Yesterday (on Monday 15th November), the two companies teamed up again for a new drop.
Partnering with the Magritte Foundation, they used the works of the late Belgian artist René Magritte as inspiration. The collection includes two new styles of the Birkenstock Boston clog, featuring Magritte’s most celebrated paintings “The Empire of Lights” (1954) and “The False Mirror” (1929). One clog features an eye observing a blue sky, while the other displays a picture-perfect sky over a dark street.
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“We founded Opening Ceremony with the goal of celebrating creativity in all forms,” said the brand’s founders Carol Lim and Humberto Leon in a press release. “As long-time admirers of René Magritte’s surrealist works, we couldn’t be more excited about reinterpreting 'L'Empire des Lumières' and 'Le Faux Miroir' for Birkenstock.”
Although it may seem like a left-field influence, this is actually the second time the two brands used the artwork of Magritte in their designs. Back in 2014, Opening Ceremony and Birkenstock released a Boston clog featuring “The Lovers,” “Sheherazade,” and “Double Reality.” The artist, who died in 1967, has previously inspired other fashion designers like Olympia Le-Tan, who launched a capsule handbag collection inspired by the artist in 2016, and Rei Kawakubo, whose Bare Feet shoes were directly inspired by his 1935 painting “The Red Model.” For Birkenstock, this capsule collection follows other designer collaborations this year, including Jil Sander, Proenza Schouler, and Rick Owens.
Available now, the two Boston models cost $180 (£133) and are available online and in select Birkenstock stores.
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