Skull Kicks

Michael Reid Sydney is thrilled to present Skull Kicks by Marc Etherington – a capsule collection of 12 blazing new wall sculptures that play to the passions of art lovers and sneakerheads alike.

Dropping Friday, 26 April, Skull Kicks immortalises a collector’s dream wardrobe of classic, cult and covetable sneakers, each one perfectly in step with Etherington’s painterly signatures and fashioned by hand in three-dimensional relief.

The acclaimed artist and six-time Archibald finalist is known for his idiosyncratic style, which sees subcultural touchstones, childhood memories and scenes of everyday domestic life play out with dark wit and a touch of absurdity. Nods to Jurassic Park, Freddy Krueger, boomboxes and old-school video game aesthetics tap into the experience of coming of age in the 1980s and 90s.

His latest crate dive through fan culture, pop-esoterica and obscure objects of desire reflects an affinity for merch, memorabilia and physical media – the material whirl that was wallpaper for a generation on the cusp of the internet and which now fires the nostalgia of obsessive collectors and online custodians of a pre-digital pop sphere.

Where once they were commercially produced, these objects are now recreated by hand, with Etherington individually forming each shoe’s distinctive silhouette with hand-cut and -painted board. The artist’s method matches the reverence with which sneakerheads might eye and covet these artefacts of the not-so-distant past while paying tribute to an array of vibrant designs and the subcultural scenes they signify.

Etherinton’s sneaker canon includes classics such as the Nike Air Force Ones and Converse All-Stars, as well as some exceptionally rare examples from sneakerhead lore: the “Freddy Krueger” Nike Dunk Lows, the cult Assassins (featured in season two of The Simpsons) and the Nike MAG, which debuted in 1989’s Back to the Future II and was instantly one of the most coveted – but unavailable – shoes in history.

All works from the series will be available to explore and acquire from Michael Reid Sydney in an online exclusive launching Friday, 26 April. And if your ultimate sneaker isn’t already enshrined in Etherington’s pantheon, hit the button below and let us know what your custom Skull Kicks design would be.

For more, please email dean@michaelreid.com.au