Don't Poke Yourself On Walter Van Beirendonck's FW20 Grounds Spike Sneaker
Practical? Not really. Whimsical? Entirely.
A lot’s happened in the world of Walter Van Beirendonck since the famously ornery Belgian fashion designer premiered a GIDDY UP — now known as Grounds — collaboration at his SS20 show: he’s released multiple collections and engaged in a high-profile, high-entertainment beef with Virgil Abloh — whom he claimed stole his designs for Louis Vuitton’s SS21 runway. Now, the Antwerp Six member is continuing the ground(s) work he premiered back in June 2019, adding wild, gigantic spikes to the already bulbous Jewelry sneaker.
Much more whimsical than practical and fully grin-inducing, the shoe’s knit white upper serves up six elongated white spikes: two on the toebox, three on the lateral quarter and one on the heel, while the medial quarter is left untouched. Several inches in length, the spikes provide a look that makes the wearer into a high-fashion Bowser and guarantees they’ll receive their personal space. A small hit of red is present on the tongue as well, and down below the midsoles continue the outlandish ethos with bulbous, super-sized air bag tooling that Grounds founder Mikio Sakabe made to “direct consciousness to the ground.”
Walter Van Beirendonck’s Spike Sneaker is available now at retailers like Concrete for a handsome €840 EUR (approximately $977 USD).
For footwear news of the more practical nature, check out the Nike Air Force 1 Craft in an elegant “Ridgerock” colorway.
