Project Title: Handmade GREEN
Selected for Scholarships 2009-10, Master of Shoes and Accessories Design, School of Fashion, IED Barcelona

I divided the project into three mayor branches: social-economic framework, artistic inheritance and Eco friendly production.

Social-economic framework:

On February 2009, Ecuadorian government by a law restricted the importation of 627 products, shoes were one of those. Due to this restriction the amount of shoes in the market reduced to 50% and the price per pair of shoes in the best scenario grew at least $10 per pair. This reduced significantly the sales of imported footwear, but created an enormous market place for national footwear. Up to august the production of artisan footwear grew 40%. The timing is perfect for this project to succeed.

Artistic inheritance:

For me a very important part of being a designer is to be connected with our past, with our roots. Ecuadorian art is characterized by its colorful culture and this begins from ancient traditions.  The skills involved are passed from generation to generation.  Among the local people there is hardly any difference between the fine arts and crafts. That is why most of the Ecuadorian art are not only beautiful, but also has a practical use.

Some of the most popular art products are woven crafts as the very popular Panama Hat and clothing and bags made the same way from hundred of years ago, of plant fibers and alpaca wool tinturated with natural plants. Some of the earliest forms of art we found were from the Pre-Columbian period. From my point of view cultures such as the Valdivia, Chorrera, Quitus, Caras and Canaris that ended with the Inca period, all were the milestones  that made what we Ecuadorians are today.

Eco friendly production:

Combining this idea to a Eco friendly project was a challenge for me. I am no Eco friendly expert, so I began researching deeply about it, I found something that caught my attention. Eco-friendly shoes need to respect 5 basic premises.

Handmade GREEN.pdf