Vans Design Week in Milan sees Willo Perron exploring the interplay of sound and architecture in their collaboration, with the question, 'Can frequency shape structures?'
In a groundbreaking collaboration, Vans has launched the Old Skool 36 FM shoe, a modern reinterpretation of their iconic waffle pattern. The shoe, part of the latest offering by the OTW arm of Vans, is not just a footwear product, but a physical manifestation of frequencies, waves, and vibrations that inspire it.
The Old Skool 36 FM shoe boasts an engineered-knit upper and tongue, along with a side stripe in 3D-injected TPU. Its compartmentalised cupsole construction mimics modular waveforms, replicating the design of the brand's classic 'Old Skool' sneakers while adding a contemporary twist.
The installation that unveiled the Old Skool 36 FM shoe, Checkered Future: Frequency Manifest, was created by Willo Perron, a renowned creative director and cultural polymath based in Los Angeles. Perron, a French-Canadian, has worked with major brands and artists, including Chanel, Rihanna, Drake, and Lady Gaga.
Perron's installation aimed to explore questions such as what sound frequencies look like, if frequency has an architecture, and if certain room dimensions are associated with specific sound frequencies. The installation, presented by Vans footwear brand at the Triennale Milano during Milan Design Week 2025, was a synesthetic and immersive experience, featuring elements like chromium domino walls, a mirrored ceiling, light shafts forming a white icicle forest, and digitally choreographed waves of discombobulation.
Perron, who grew up attending Montreal raves and warehouse parties in the 1990s, collaborated with musician Tim Hecker on the installation. The sloped, grid-work embankment in the Checkered Future: Frequency Manifest installation was inspired by Norman Engleback's Southbank in London.
The Old Skool 36 FM shoe is now available for purchase from vans.com. While the specifics of Perron's involvement with Vans and the Triennale Milano for Milan Design Week 2025 are not clear, his role in the collaboration underscores Vans' commitment to pushing boundaries in design and creativity.
The Old Skool 36 FM shoe, with its engineered-knit upper and 3D-injected TPU side stripe, represents a fashion-and-beauty statement within Vans' home-and-garden of products, blending technology into its contemporary design. Willo Perron's synesthetic and immersive installation, Checkered Future: Frequency Manifest, showcased at Milan Design Week 2025, serves as a visual embodiment of the fusion between lifestyle, fashion-and-beauty, home-and-garden, and technology that defines this groundbreaking collaboration.
