I've never done that lesson that many art teachers swear by- you know, the one where you have the students take off a shoe and use it as a model for a still life. The reason, I'm told, that this lesson is so useful is because kids are really into their shoes (whereas I, on the other hand, couldn't care less about footwear, which is probably why (a)I'd never done this lesson and (b) my wife needs to tell me when to buy new shoes).

However, this project would give me cause to look down at my feet for inspiration. Artists Hudson-Powell and Jethro Haynes have created these great little dioramas out of shoes:




So although I'm no authority on foot fashion, I'll take my colleague's word for it about the shoe thing, and suggest this art project as a lesson. Recycle some old shoes, add an extra order of disinfectant spray for next year, and you're good to go!

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