CLARKS ORIGINALS

"An engineering masterpiece, a work of art."

 

This is how Leonardo Da Vinci defined the foot and so we decided to tell a story of revolution and innovation.

 

Between 1914 and 1926 the classical composer Boughton set up a series of concerts and performances in Glastonbury, a town in Somerset, now popular thanks to the festival of the same name which has its roots in this event.

 

The performances featured contemporary composers and were sponsored by the Clark family, a name well known to footwear enthusiasts and subcultures.

 

In 1825, a few kilometers from the location, James and Cyrus Clark designed the first Clarks model in their own tannery, marking the birth of the brand that would soon pass from local fame to sales throughout the island.

 

The bohemian background, the folk and hippie influences, the link with the concept of aggregation and freedom that characterize the event will be among the main topics of the identity of the Clarks brand, still today a big player of the scene and subcultures.

 

In fact, Clarks has the merit of being a leader in the counterculture of the 60s, without forgetting to conquer mods, rube boys, rappers or casuals, remaining faithful over the years to his models and revisiting them in collaboration with a mix of creatives from different influences and roots. .

 

The Desert Boot was the shoe that in the 40s changed the history of the brand thanks to an intuition of Nathan Clarks, great-grandson of the founder.

 

The latter, in Burma, was inspired by the "made in Cairo" boots that the allies wore for and created the first prototype of the iconic sneaker that would later be launched in the early 1950s.

 

A shoe born from the revolution that soon ended up at the feet of generational icons such as the Beatles and James Dean, conquering one of the most important cultural movements ever.

 

Among the more than 22,000 specimens in the Clarks archive there is a model capable of conquering our hearts more than the others: the Wallabee.

 

Born in the 70s with the aim of renewing the concept of comfort, the daughter of an intuition that dates back to 1880, the shoe immediately formed a love relationship with Jamaica and reggae, as exhaustively documented by the book "Clarks in Jamaica" by Al Fingers.

 

The brand was the reference for everything that talked about craftsmanship and quality.

 

The 90s saw the Wallabee star in two of the most iconic covers of the decade.

 

New York, in 1993, is the perfect setting for Wu-Tang Clan's debut album, Enter the 36 Chambers.

 

All 9 members of the band, on the cover, wear the Wallabe at their feet struck by that bizarre and innovative shape.

 

1997 is the year of Verve's Urban Hymns, a milestone in britpop.

 

The photo was taken in Richmond Park, London, and Richard Ashcroft, leader of the band, wore the protagonist of this phase of the story.

 

The memorable selection of pop cultures ends with the Breaking Bad series where Walter White wears the Wallabees between one crystal and another.

 

The Clarks have always stolen moments from our eyes during concerts, reviews and events.

 

Today we are happy to share with you our selection available in store and online.

 

Shop CLARKS ORIGINALS at FLAT shop