Salehe Bembury – Shoe God

Salehe Bembury is the preeminent on his fingerprint, eminent designer to emerge from sneaker culture. He's putting his footwear and fashion-and getting his REI on.

- By Mark Wilson

IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO WALK WITH SALEHE BEMBURY AND NOT STARE AT EVERYONE'S FEET.

The asphalt is stick-to-your-soles hot as Bembury, one of the most famous shoe designers on the planet, threads his way through the stalls of Pasadena, California's legendary Rose Bowl Flea Market where, once a month for the last 50 years, designers like Christian Louboutin have gone elbow-to-elbow with bargain hunters in search of unique treasures. The thousands of stalls filled with millions of knickknacks feel, in many ways, more oppressive than the blacktop, a seemingly endless array of faded Yu-Ghi-Oh tees and frayed Lakers jerseys, mid-century dining tables, and 35 mm-era Olympus point-and-shoots. But as we walk, a quick glance beneath the card tables reveals a whole other world, a tacit language gestured through our footwear.

Gen Z goths and Gen Xhome-improvement types rock the same black Vans Old Skools (though in the latter case, they're bruised and ripped at the seams). The millennials with-a-job wear stock Air Max 90 and Yeezy 350s. Then there are the hype beasts who have chosen something quirkier to signal their elevated taste. When we turn a corner, three young men are waiting-wearing, respectively, mint-condition Midnight Navy Nike Dunks, Off-White x Jordan 5 SP "Sails," and turquoise New Balance "Water Be the Guide" sneakers-and that's when I realize that this group isn't here by coincidence.