Basquiat Shoe

To follow up on Josh’s Reebok tip, I wanted to throw out some food for thought with regards to the new Reebok Basquiat shoe, the Reebopper. In an attempt to connect with the youth market, Reebok is heavily pushing its new advertising campaign called “I Am What I Am,” of which the Reebopper is an integral part. While the concept of using Basquiat’s art on the shoe is good, I think in reality it misses the mark. Basquiat is no doubt one of the most highly acclaimed artists of his time in the avant-garde fine art world. But it is ultimately his association with that scene, and not the current realm of street/graffiti art, that results in the shoe’s shortcomings. If I were Reebok, I would’ve signed an exclusive deal with a “living legend” of the graffiti scene, someone like Zephyr or Doze Green.