6 DAYS AGO IN CULTURE
WORDS BY JAKE SILBERT
Heron Preston isn't interested in hoarding shoes. The designer is willing to practically give away some of his prized sneakers to make that point, in fact, partnering with eBay for a charitable fire sale of sorts.
Preston is the debut face of eBay's From the Collection series, a new program that sees the digital auction site sell-off coveted grails from the archives of culturally savvy fashion insiders and tastemakers. Just because this is the first installment, however, doesn't mean that Preston is taking it easy.
Several shoes from Preston's stash will be up for grabs on eBay's Heron Preston website from October 3, each with a starting bid of only $0.99.
You've got personal treasures like Preston's first pair of Nike Foamposites and "SF Giants” Dunks — a favorite of his since childhood — and sought-after kicks like JJJJound's New Balance 992 collab.
But, objectively, the most salient pair of sneakers is the sample pair of YEEZY 750s — the original adidas YEEZY shoe! — that Preston was gifted by Kanye himself while Preston worked on the YEEZY sneaker design team.
“‘From the Collection: Heron Preston’ makes so much sense,” Preston exclaimed.
“Wear your shoes! Collecting is not relevant anymore in today's world if you aren’t planning on using what you’re collecting. Collecting with no intention to use is a leftover concept linked to materialism and unnecessary consumption. Wear your shoes or pass them on to extend their life and purpose.”
Note that though Preston did indeed wear the shoes he's selling, eBay has brought on sneaker cleaning experts Reshoevn8er to refresh them to nearly-new status, ensuring that winners receive wearably clean kicks.
Suffice to say, Preston's putting his money where his mouth is, though he's not putting that money back into his wallet: all the proceeds generated by “From the Collection: Heron Preston” will benefit New York's Fashion Scholarship Fund.
“It’s important to me to support the next generation of creatives that care about imaginative and innovative solutions that reflect my commitment to sustainability and the environment,” Preston continued. “100% of the proceeds will help provide scholarships and grants to young creatives through the Heron Preston L.E.D. (Less Environmentally Destructive) initiative powered by the Fashion Scholarship Fund.”
It's a move that directly conflicts with the tenets of our late-capitalist culture, wherein these material goods are given some inherent clout that outweighs the rubber and leather that went into their production, thus encouraging collectors to hoard unworn sneakers in hopes of impressing visitors or waiting for values to appreciate.
Preston turns the script on its head: if you ain't wearing these shoes, he says, they have no inherent value. Don't let your possessions possess you.