What would you do with an old shoe?
Leave it by the dumpster. Maybe take it to a recycling center. Or most likely throw it in the back of the closet and forget about it until your next move.
What if we’re talking about Nike sneakers that hit the market in the 90s?
Luckily, Tokyo-based Kosuke Sugimoto took a different route. Inspired by the artistic decay of moss-covered ruins, the artist, also known as Shoetree on Instagram, is using vintage Nike running shoes as a growing medium for plants.
He buys vintage Nike shoes at auctions, painstakingly cleans them and coats the mesh of the shoes with moss. It can take up to three years for the moss to take over the mesh in a process that Sugimoto calls “justification of deterioration.”
The planter shoes are currently for sale at Japan-based pop-up stores and events.
For a closer look at the planters, check out this video featuring Shoetree on Play Tokyo and, of course, the artist’s own Instagram account.
All images via Shoetree.tokyo
