Should reality be augmented? Today it seems ever-increasingly and perhaps dangerously possible to hide oneself comfortably behind a screen, to distance oneself from the tangibility of the world and its consequences. Human interaction becomes more and more mediated by technology as digital simulacra creep off of screens and into the immediacy of the real world. Is technology dishonest? Is it squashing our humanity?
Gucci characteristically raises a unique voice in this discussion, as the always on-point house has teamed up with artists working in both digital and physical media to celebrate the launch of their new Ace sneakers.
One such artist is motion designer Esteban Diácono, who creatively used the collaborative opportunity to create a fascinatingly unique and delightfully weird digital art installation. Based in Buenos Aires and working all over the globe, Diácono creates otherworldly yet human digital pieces that explore our sense of motion and space. For his collaboration with Gucci, he says that “the main inspiration for this piece came from the idea of comfort. The goal was to create a ‘character’ inspired on that weightless and comfortable sensation, and the first thing that came to mind were memories of floating in water and the elegance of jellyfishes.” The character is indeed jellyfish-like; impressively rendered fabric bounces and sways delicately as the bulbous creature walks on disembodied, Gucci-clad feet. The motion capture technology used instills this personification of comfort with a surprisingly recognizable air of humanity.
The collaborative project also features artists Didi Rojas, a Brooklyn-based sculptor who crafted an uncannily realistic ceramic Ace sneaker, and Oh Jia Hao, a 3D animator based in Singapore whose work playfully explores physics and tactility.
In tandem with the launch of their sneakers and artistic collaborations, Gucci has released a new app which will let users try on a pair of the sneakers in virtual reality. By smartly blending innovative technical concepts with honest artistic collaboration and casually human ideas of comfort and creativity, Gucci presents a vision of our times in which technology is not cold and inhuman, but welcoming, accessible, exciting, and even beautiful.
Gucci Creative Director | Alessandra Michele
Video Creative Directors | Esteban Diácono, Didi Rojas, & Oh Jia Hao