THE ODYSSEY SOLE DID NOT BEGIN WITH DESIGN SKETCHES. IT BEGAN WITH A QUESTION: HOW DOES THE BODY TRULY MOVE, AND HOW MIGHT A SOLE COMPLEMENT THAT NATURAL MOTION WHILE EMBODYING THE AESTHETIC CODES OF LUXURY?
FROM THE OUTSET, THE 1812 RESEARCH TEAM IMMERSED ITSELF IN STUDIES OF GAIT AND MOVEMENT, BORROWING INSIGHTS FROM THE WORLD OF PERFORMANCE FOOTWEAR. THE CHALLENGE WAS NOT SIMPLY TO REPLICATE ATHLETIC SOLUTIONS BUT TO REINTERPRET THEM FOR THE LANGUAGE OF LUXURY, WHERE CRAFT AND PROPORTION CARRY EQUAL IMPORTANCE. EARLY STAGES INVOLVED TESTING EXISTING SOLE UNITS, MAPPING THEIR LIMITATIONS AND UNDERSTANDING HOW MATERIALS INFLUENCE NOT JUST COMFORT BUT ENERGY RETURN, FATIGUE AND POSTURE. EACH ROUND OF INQUIRY PUSHED THE PROJECT CLOSER TO A VISION OF A SOLE THAT WOULD WORK IN HARMONY WITH THE HANDMADE LAST.
THE OUTCOME WAS THE ODYSSEY SOLE — A DESIGN THAT REDUCES STRAIN AND ENERGY LOSS, SUPPORTING THE BODY THROUGH THE SIMPLE ACT OF WALKING. IT IS NOT INTENDED FOR SPORT, YET IT CARRIES THE INTELLIGENCE OF PERFORMANCE. IT IS NOT BOUND BY TRADITION, YET IT HONOURS IT. IN THE ODYSSEY SOLE, 1812 HAS CREATED MORE THAN A FOUNDATION FOR FOOTWEAR. IT HAS CREATED A PHILOSOPHY OF MOVEMENT, EXPRESSED THROUGH CRAFT AND THE PURSUIT OF RARITY.
