Jim Green Boots
If you know me, you know I have a bit of an obsession with boots. I have watched many videos of various companies showing the process of how boots are made, along with the human hands operating the machines.
I admire the fact that some types of boots can be re-soled and a beloved piece of footwear can become a long cherished part of a persons life.
This inspired me to make ceramic boots. Replicas of one of my favorite pairs, the Jim Green Numzaan. Jim Green is a company based out of South Africa.
While working on pottery and sculpture, I have consistently worn my Jim Green African Rangers, they have been with me for every single piece of art that I have recently made. That number is in the 100s now.
My boots are close to needing a resole and I look forward to continuing the journeys we have shared together.
The process of making these boots involved looking at the pair I own and making pattern templates. I then cut flattened pieces of clay to match the patterns and assembled the pieces. I added holes for real laces, and even speed hooks. After I glazed them I even added stitches around the sole to resemble the stitch down construction Jim green uses on their real boots.
They are even in my actual shoe size, 12 and 1/2, though clay shrinks and they are probably 11’s now.
I suppose in a way I have made art that enshrines the values of hard work, creativity, and the desire to make useful things, though ironically the boots I made are perhaps only useful for the eye.
Jim Green Numzaan boots.
Rough, worn looking, replicas of The Numzaan boots.
