Sneakers have long been loved as a staple of casual fashion, transcending gender, age, and socioeconomic categories to become the footwear of choice for millions across the globe. Out of the Box: The Rise of Sneaker Culture tells the sneaker’s complex and fascinating story through approximately 150 pairs drawn from the collections of the Bata Shoe Museum; the Northampton Museums and Art Gallery; the Kosow Sneaker Museum; the archives of Adidas, Converse, Nike, and PUMA; and private collectors such as Dee Wells of Obsessive Sneaker Disorder, Bobbito Garcia and legendary hip-hop group Run—DMC.

 

              This trend may seem unsurprising to us today, accustomed as we are to celebrity branding for everything from perfumes, to impotence medication, to food. But more than almost any other consumer durable, the success of a basketball shoe is commensurate to the star wattage of who is wearing the kicks. Part of this is unique to basketball. Soccer may be the biggest sport in the world, but even if you idolize Ronaldo, you can’t exactly wear his cleats to class or the club. On the other hand, in basketball you can not only wear what your idol is wearing—you can look good in them.

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