Korean Rubber Shoes Redesigned

20 Jun 2007 Category: Arts & Crafts, Events & Exhibitions, Fashion, Features, Worldwide

Korean Rubber Shoes Redesigned

Remaking traditional Korean farmers' shoes, from the DMY Korean Rubber Shoe exhibition in Berlin: German Jan Philipp Wittrin’s a.k.a. POG’s 'Rubber Socks' transform into temporary rain boots. With a bit of a 'Louis XIV' styling they are perfect as fancy street wear.

What are these canoe resembling shoes with their snug skywards noses? Korean Rubber Shoes! As part of an international town twinning in the design field, Korean and German designers from Seoul and Berlin remade and redesigned the traditional Korean boots which are still preferably worn for outside farming work. After an exhibition of the Korean part last year at the Seoul Design Festival, the equally cute results turned to art of the German side were just shown at Berlin’s DMY Korean Rubber Shoe exhibition. PingMag grabbed DMY’s creative director Joerg Suehrmann who selected the German part for a very quick chat.

Written by Verena

Wibke Isenberg’s and Irene Hardjanegara’s high-heeled “same same but different,” from the Korean Rubber Shoe exhibition.

When did the Korean Rubber Shoe project start?

It was initially commissioned by last year’s Seoul Design Festival as a project. As we are collaborating with them closely since 2005, we thought it a good opportunity for a show at this year’s Designmai. At the 2006 event the Koreans brought us the shoes and asked me to choose the German section. I had lots of fun selecting it: It wasn’t commissioned by a commercial client and the designers could freely work on it. I liked their ironic approach a lot, too.


Traditional Korean rubber shoes with healing silt, by Sybille Kesslau. Never ending foot massage!

Also by Sybille Kesslau: rubber shoes with sandpaper.

Concrete? Indeed! Berlin-based Metrofarm’s mating of fine delicate shape with ruff material.

Now, why rubber shoes? I read that they were traditionally worn by farmers and used to be made out of leather. Also, they might have originated from Japan…

Yes. . Most probably they are used for humid seasons. Moreover, I found out that the traditional Korean wedding shoes have the same shape, but they are usually made of another material. Here in Berlin, we did ask ourselves who actually is wearing them at all - as they are not the most comfy ones to wear…

Jaybo’s a.k.a. Monk’s ‘HE AND HER’. He says: “I see man and woman as an inseparable entity, different but same regarding the simplicity of the material they are made of. These shoes are not made for walking, they are made to reflect on about the responsibility of creating a new association: We are all equal.” Okay…

‘Supermann’ by JPECH.

Some shoes have a different shape - so they are not unisex?

There are two different versions for men and women. The ladies’ Rubber Shoe is trimmer with front and back side more skywards. Whereas the mens’ version looks more like a normal shoe, being broader and flatter.

The carnivorous plant shoe by Pit Ruge.

Vogt + Weizenegger’s doorhandle shoes: ‘The doorhandle is the pictured expression of the link between East and West, North and South.’ Rapid prototyping, once again!

I see. For you as curator, how did you select the designers?

I searched for artists whom I knew would have a very different approach in terms of material and concept. That is why I chose a variety of product designers and furniture and fashion designers. For example, product designers Vogt + Weizenegger worked quite conceptual, thus making doorknobs out of the shoes. Or see Florinda Schnitzel’s approach: Coming from a background in fashion, she chose to use only the same material to alter the shoe’s surface with rubber patches.

Korean Kim Chi-ho upgraded his rubber shoes with studs for the fancy disco apparel. Commissioned by the Seoul Design Festival 2006.

How about Golo Schmeh’s sequined rubber extravaganza?

Graphic designer Golo Schmeh liked to work with different glueing techniques…

…and Jan Philipp Wittrin’s elegantly enhanced rubber boots, not only for rainy season…

He had his mens’ version with yellow socks, the ladies’ version goes in pink.

Glistening beauty by Tine Benz.

And I really got into Jaybo’s spikey shoes resembling a sea urchin. Who is behind that nickname, by the way?

Jaybo a.k.a. Monk is the art director of style mag and of fashion label Iriedaily. With his pair he tried to play with our perception of gender…


What’s left at the end of the day… by Lee Suk-woo, from the exhibition at the Seoul Design Festival.

Rubber sequins by Golo Schmeh.

Tribal tattoos? Everything looks good on those shoes! Benoît Deneufbourg’s redesign.

Also interesting are the concrete shoes of Berlin-based Metrofarm: turned to art objects as you can’t obviously wear them…

They completely abandoned the idea of the shoe itself.

Well, regarding Metrofarm’s works, concrete is one of their favourite ingredients anyway…

Yes, however most of the designers operated within their fields. For example, Vogt + Weizenegger did already a lot with rapid prototyping like their Sinter Chair, so they naturally applied that to the shoes as well. Or take Jan Philipp Wittrin a.k.a. POG: He is a furniture designer always using stuff he buys from the do-it-yourself store. His rubber socks, for example, are made of typical rubber gloves from the store.


Lee Sang-jin, from the Seoul Design Festival 2006.

Oh Se-hwan, from the Seoul Design Festival 2006.

Oh Se-hwan, from the Seoul Design Festival 2006.

Park Jin-woo, from the Seoul Design Festival 2006.

Beautiful! I’m eager for your coming collaborations at next year’s DMY. Thank you, Joerg Suehrmann!


From the Korean Rubber Shoe exhibition in Berlin… Photo by Bernd Tochatschek.

… held at the Korean embassy. Photo by Bernd Tochatschek.

62 Comments

  1. good site!
    good design!

    Posted by: soold.cn on June 20th, 2007 at 7:16 pm

  2. Shoes are a favorite platform to exhibit designs and to make loud fashion statements.

    Posted by: Clara on June 20th, 2007 at 7:26 pm

  3. [...] text/link/images via pingmag [...]

    Posted by: Korean Rubber Shoes Redesigned at dérive on June 20th, 2007 at 7:59 pm

  4. nice designs keep it up !!

    Posted by: Hrithik Roshan on June 20th, 2007 at 8:01 pm

  5. Would like to see what they look like on feet?? Any photos??

    Posted by: SHANTELL MARTIN on June 20th, 2007 at 11:07 pm

  6. Oh maaan! Thx for work!e

    Posted by: Noo on June 21st, 2007 at 12:13 am

  7. The carnivorous shoes have a lovely design, I wonder if they would be comfortable to wear.

    Posted by: al on June 21st, 2007 at 1:59 am

  8. [...] from Pingmag showed a number of design works from the Korean rubber shoes redesign project commissioned by last year’s Seoul Design Festival. Share [...]

    Posted by: Global Voices Online » Korea: Rubber Shoes Redesigned on June 21st, 2007 at 1:50 pm

  9. Shoes are always used to make fashion (or not) statements whether are they practical to be worn (or not).

    Posted by: Clara on June 21st, 2007 at 2:37 pm

  10. [...] più che una semplice calzatura è un vero e proprio stile di vita. Tutte le immagini le trovate su PingMag. Scritto da Simone il 21 Giugno, 2007Tags: arte, design, [...]

    Posted by: Scarpe di gomma coreane – Frizzifrizzi.it on June 21st, 2007 at 4:01 pm

  11. Very nicely complied.
    Interesting to know.

    Posted by: Paavani on June 21st, 2007 at 4:17 pm

  12. Oh maaan! Thx for work!l

    Posted by: Hoo on June 21st, 2007 at 6:57 pm

  13. These shoes are amazing, I am quite speachless, I want to see more shoes!!!

    Posted by: nana on June 21st, 2007 at 11:07 pm

  14. Fabulous designs! really would eb nice to see photos with these shoes on feet.

    Posted by: Mindaugas on June 25th, 2007 at 8:14 pm

  15. Shoes are just so instrumental for designers to make bold (fashion or not) statements!

    Posted by: Tips Of All Sorts on June 26th, 2007 at 6:33 pm

  16. I would love to have a pair or the blue shoes that lace up with those chains.It’s so HOT……are you ever going to sell them?

    Posted by: Shaylee on September 29th, 2007 at 6:53 am

  17. HEYOP ..

    WICKED SITE ND I LOVE THE DESIGNS I WANNA GET THE BLACK ND RED ONES..

    Posted by: hannah on October 24th, 2007 at 5:07 am

  18. very nise

    Posted by: miga on November 15th, 2010 at 11:37 pm

  19. Thanks for an honest and truthful post, I like it very much. And happy new year!

    Good writing, this article bring me a lot. Your blog is great, thanks for sharing.

    Thank you for bringing more information to this topic for me. I’m truly grateful and really impressed.
    sddghsdhsdh

    Posted by: men watches online on May 23rd, 2011 at 11:34 am

  20. It would be a shame to lose precious expensive games, however with this tool

    Posted by: wii backup manager on May 24th, 2011 at 10:53 pm

  21. I like your website, also Knowing the calories in foods, will help you know how many calories you have consumed during the day. This will in turn, help you to maintain your calorie balance to reduce weight.

    Posted by: calories for food on May 25th, 2011 at 8:31 am

  22. I look to expand my raising rabbits knowledge.

    Posted by: raising rabbits on May 31st, 2011 at 4:57 am

  23. I enjoy this Website. Keep giving great information.

    Posted by: Fat Loss on June 7th, 2011 at 3:16 am

  24. I have been searching all over the internet for something to give me the correct advice. This is not exactly what I was looking for but it helped a lot. You have a great site. Thanks.

    Posted by: Taking Vitamins on June 7th, 2011 at 10:04 am

  25. Thanks for your help, I have been looking for this for quite a while.

    Posted by: Big Affiliate Profits Review on June 13th, 2011 at 8:02 am

  26. I want to see the many development of this site.

    Posted by: innovative healthcare on June 15th, 2011 at 2:50 am

  27. I like your way of thinking. Personal development and its many forms are really close to my heart. I also believe in getting different points of view on this subject to really broaden my thinking.

    Posted by: personal development on June 16th, 2011 at 4:06 am

  28. Nice Website! You should promote it from the messaging console at QuickSendSMS.com. Easy to use, nice and quick and you can text friends about it for free.

    Posted by: QuickSendSMS on June 17th, 2011 at 10:37 am

  29. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Maecenas viverra luctus commodo. Mauris semper, felis ut lacinia facilisis, arcu nulla mollis turpis, non laoreet nibh orci vel tellus. Vestibulum in.

    Posted by: online dating tips new york on June 19th, 2011 at 9:29 pm

  30. Basically your this site is excellently organized and very informative. Thanks

    Posted by: Affiliate Marketing Reviews on July 10th, 2011 at 4:09 am

  31. This is a extermely nice article and very interesting. I have bookmarked and will check back often.

    Posted by: Free Website Traffic|Free Traffic on July 13th, 2011 at 7:40 am

  32. What an interesting website that you’ve got! I like all of your articles! Keep up the good work :)

    Posted by: Inspirational women on July 17th, 2011 at 1:31 am

  33. süper site

    Posted by: goruntulu sohbet on July 23rd, 2011 at 10:47 pm

  34. buyrun siteye mukemmel

    Posted by: goruntulu sohbet on July 27th, 2011 at 12:33 am

  35. You’ve got great insights, keep up the good work!

    Posted by: Free Facebook Like's on July 31st, 2011 at 1:21 am

  36. [...] heel’s a new thing though and I love it!).  New Korean designers are coming out with some contemporary versions (an old link) and I must pick up a pair when I’m in Korea later this [...]

    Posted by: Wedding Photographers in London | Weddings at Hotel Russell » Documentary Wedding Photography | London Wedding Photographer on August 3rd, 2011 at 1:10 am

  37. Hi, I like your website. I’m currently looking for golf supplies in the UK & USA.

    Posted by: golf supplies on August 23rd, 2011 at 11:34 pm

  38. I like your website,looking fora healther body.

    Posted by: Flu Cures on September 11th, 2011 at 12:48 am

  39. I really would like to learn more information about your business, what is it and why is it important.

    Posted by: Perfect Pitch Recognition on October 11th, 2011 at 1:54 am

  40. I am impressed with your website and interested in collectibles. Finding nutcrackers of some interest as well as other collectibles.

    Posted by: nutcracker on November 2nd, 2011 at 6:14 am

  41. I’ve said that least 1470050 times. The problem this like that is they are just too compilcated for the average bird, if you know what I mean

    Posted by: a1470050 on November 4th, 2011 at 5:29 am

  42. Good day! Would you mind if I share your blog with my zynga group? There’s a lot of people that I think would really enjoy your content. Please let me know. Thank you

    Posted by: how to make your own beats on November 4th, 2011 at 11:42 am

  43. I really would like to learn more information about your business, what is it and why is it important.

    Posted by: christian louboutin on November 10th, 2011 at 6:12 am

  44. The ULTIMATE Weight Loss Surgery Resource

    Posted by: gastric bypass on November 11th, 2011 at 9:20 am

  45. xEwWla Cheap Valium

    Posted by: Top Makeup Brands on November 11th, 2011 at 11:34 pm

  46. Definitely believe that which you stated. Your favorite reason seemed to be on the net the simplest thing to be aware of. I say to you, I certainly get annoyed while people think about worries that they just do not know about. You managed to hit the nail upon the top and also defined out the whole thing without having side effect , people can take a signal. Will probably be back to get more. Thanks

    Posted by: web business directory on November 12th, 2011 at 7:58 pm

  47. Posted by: Joye Cerros on November 12th, 2011 at 8:03 pm

  48. Collecting figurines has become more popular lately and many people are turning to the internet to locate them.

    Posted by: Figurines on November 21st, 2011 at 4:34 pm

  49. กระ จุดด่างดำ คืนผิวขาวเนียนนุ่มชุ่มชื้นให้แก่ผิว ด้วยส่วนผสมอันทรงคุณค่าจากธรรมชาติ

    Posted by: อาหารเสริม on November 24th, 2011 at 5:46 pm

  50. Osmanlı İnşaatın Yeni Başlatmış Olduğu Projeleri Bu Site Üzerinden Takip Edebilirsiniz..

    Posted by: Osmanlı İnşaat Forum on November 24th, 2011 at 8:30 pm

  51. Check out our Cyber Monday deals on everything from cell phones with service to no-contract phones, unlocked phones, Bluetooth headsets, cases, chargers, and more

    Posted by: technology on November 28th, 2011 at 3:49 pm

  52. Do you have a very good site

    Posted by: reza atayee fard on December 4th, 2011 at 6:37 am

  53. I think this is all politics

    Posted by: Abdominal muscle on December 8th, 2011 at 6:17 am

  54. its a nice and interesting post, congratulations and happy holidays!

    Posted by: diet and fitness on December 20th, 2011 at 7:30 pm

  55. Hey this is awesome blogs. Keep posted usefull information. Thank you

    Posted by: roll up awnings on January 5th, 2012 at 6:36 pm

  56. Безплатни обяви в Facebook, сайт за обяви вестник за обяви добави обяви, София, Пловдив, Варна.

    Posted by: Безплатни обяви on January 13th, 2012 at 12:48 am

  57. Enter to the safest social networking site! Love GENERATION –> http://www.love-2day.com Free Forum Free Blog Free Ads

    Posted by: Social Network on January 13th, 2012 at 11:13 pm

  58. Thanks for this post. It is very useful. I hope you will write an article. This issue again.

    Posted by: illslick on January 17th, 2012 at 5:39 am

  59. If you are seeking a well-seasoned group of veteran painting and decorating professionals in the London area, your search is finally over when you discover the greatness of DecorCraft Services. With over 50% of our customers coming from the good works they tell others about, the clean and expert atmosphere that our professional crew of painting and decorating professionals will bring is phenomenal. We are respectful and complete every assignment that we are given in the most accurate and timeliest of fashions, and take into account the budget that you may have set for the project.

    Posted by: Painting and Decorating on January 26th, 2012 at 8:14 pm

  60. MOTET - Deutsch Polnische Band polnische Band polnische Hochzeitsband polnische Hochzeitsmusik

    Posted by: Die Hochzeitsband MOTET aus NRW bietet Ihnen professionelle Musik f�r Ihre Hochzeitsfeier. polnische-hochzeiten.motet.de on January 27th, 2012 at 7:24 am

  61. Hi ….. I have information about Whirlpool washers, you should read them and get tips and tricks commersial business with Whirlpool washers.

    Posted by: whirlpool washers on January 27th, 2012 at 6:33 pm

  62. Polnische Band M�NSTER |Polnische Live Band +DJ |Polnische Hochzeit | Deutsch polnische Band | Polnische Hochzeitsband | Polnische Hochzeitsmusik | Polnische Live Musik NRW

    Posted by: Polnische Band der Spitzenklasse NRW on January 27th, 2012 at 7:07 pm

  • Share and Enjoy:
  • del.icio.us
  • digg
  • Fark
  • NewsVine
  • RawSugar
  • Reddit
  • YahooMyWeb
Previously on PingMag