Sole Connection

Sole Connection: A Mile in Another's Shoes Our shoes take us everywhere. Our shoes are part of our identities. Our shoes say something about who we are. We spend so much of our time not paying attention to each other. When we take the time to share with each other and appreciate the subtleties, we become closer as a community, as a world. Walk that mile in someone else's experience. Share your shoes. Share your story. Bare your Sole. a project by Steven H Silberg contact the artist

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Jim

In 1992, I was in NYC for the CMJ music festival, when I wandered into a shop that sold handmade belts, bags and sandals. I’ve always had a secret ambition to make sandals, and I struck up a conversation with the store’s proprietor. She offered to apprentice me, but I had just bought a row home in Baltimore, and I couldn’t pull it off.  She has since passed away. 

For Christmas last year, my partner found another, similar shoe maker, and bought me the experience (and sandals) of having custom shoes made for me. These fit me perfectly, and I hope to enjoy them for many, many years to come. And, maybe someday, I’ll learn about to make them myself. 

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I painted these shoes as a reminder that every now and then, you have to remember to take a walk, turn everything off and simply have quiet time with yourself. I walk somewhere quiet at least once a week to put my brain in off mode. Now, every time I look at these shoes I know that It’s ok to just be still without even thinking about it. It’s alright to not answer the phone, plans change all the time, being alone is not the worst thing that can happen, It’s ok to do nothing, It’s a blessing to smile for no reason. stepping away from the hustle and bustle of life’s challenges can help you move forward.

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Christine

My shoes have brought me to New York City, where I finally feel free to pursue my dreams as an artist. While I am thankful for those shoes, I no longer want to wear them. They are too emblematic of the past, of a person I no longer am. That person was too constricted to tell the stories she knew she had to tell. A scholarship to an MFA program where I know I am appreciated and supported has changed me. For the first time ever, I have true confidence in my point of view. I’m here to develop it and I never want to return to that dark, emotional place where I felt so small.   

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Kathy

125 Years of Friendship 

These three pairs of shoes represent 125 years of friendship.  The shoes on the left belong to Janice; the shoes in the middle are Cheryl’s; the ones on the right are mine. 

Cheryl and Janice met when Cheryl moved into Janice’s neighborhood when they were both 10.  They have been best friends ever since.  They were in each other’s weddings; they had daughters around the same time.  They are now 60, so that represents 50 years of friendship.

Cheryl and Janice’s daughters, Natalie and Dawn, were born 4 months apart and have been friends since they were born.  They are now both 37, so that’s another 37 years of friendship.  

Though Cheryl, Janice, and I attended the same high school, I did not know either of them.  I met Cheryl when I started working “downtown”. I joined a carpool and she was in it.  We had many good times during our sometimes very long, boring, traffic jammed commute.  There was another lady in the carpool, Wanda, who had been friends with Cheryl for a very long time.  The three of us would go out partying on the weekend and relive it on Monday mornings in the carpool, filling in the gaps of each other’s memories, with a lot of “oh no’s” and “reallys” and laughing our butts off!  There were two “older”, married people in the carpool, and they lived vicariously through our weekend adventures.  I moved to another state, so Cheryl and I became separated by distance, and lifestyle.  She was living in the country, married with children, and I was single, living in an urban environment.  I eventually retired and moved back to my hometown.  Cheryl and I reconnected and it was like we never went away.  Our friendship represents approximately 38 years of friendship. 

 In this picture we are at the beach in Cape May, NJ.  We had taken the ferry over from Delaware.  It was a first time experience for us.  It was a very stormy, rainy day and the ferry was rocking!  But we enjoyed it!

I am sure these shoes will see many more years of friendship!

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Haley

These shoes have been the pair I have worn since I was in sophomore year of high school. The backs of the soles have worn down over the years of wear and tear. The reason I prefer to continuously keep wearing this pair of shoes is because of the sentiment I hold to them. These shoes have carried me though the toughest parts in life thus far. Back in high school, I was stuck in family court trying to escape the verbal and emotional abuse form one of my parents, with the help of the other in the addition to switching high schools. My shoes were what carried me all the walks home from school, allowed me to meet my friends, allowed me a form of freedom away from my home situation.

These shoes were a way for me to show what I liked, nothing frilly or “girly”. Someone who liked to dress more androgynous during the time of questioning who I was, not wanting to conform to the idea of being a “girl”, a person who was characterized as weaker, needing to wear makeup and heels, and needed someone to take care of me. This was my way of showing I could be strong on my own without the ideals of our society’s look on females, which lead to a more personal growth of who I am now, and allowing me to be more comfortable with myself. 

Now, these shoes are worn out, but I still prefer to wear these over any other shoes because they have become the most comfortable shoes I own, having grown with me. The soles of these shoes are a reflection to my life, they might have gone through hard times and are torn and damaged but they are still in great condition considering for being worn everyday for over 5 years. 

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Jamie

Four years ago I moved to Baltimore from a small town in Northern Illinois. It was an abrupt move, and one done mostly out of desperation; there was no room for me to grow there anymore. The hardest part of leaving my home of 25 years was the thought of leaving the people behind… it might not seem like a big deal, what with technology being so versatile these days, but it certainly was daunting. One of my oldest buddies, Erika, took me out for a day during the final week I was in town. We had lunch, shopped around, tried to talk about anything but my impending launch. Just before we parted ways we wandered into a local shoe store and found these beauties. So simple, light, and comfortable… they instantly suited both of our tastes, so we bought matching pairs. Four days later, I wore them as I drove the U-Haul for sixteen hours, and after four years, I continue to wear them  frequently. They aren’t without their share of small tears, and the side of the right one is worn so thin that I can see my skin through it when the lighting is bright. But they’ve only gotten more comfortable over time, and sometimes when I slip them on I think of smiling faces in my sleepy home town. Once in a while, Erika sends me a text message: “I’m wearing our shoes!” And if I’m wearing them when I go to somewhere new or exciting, I’ll take one of these snapshots and jot down where I was. To me, they’re home and new possibilities all wrapped into one.

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These shoes were ruined by painting and renovating a 200 year old cottage I lived in for 18 years. It was originally built to house the workers who would have worked at Lyme Hall in Disley, Cheshire.

from

Eleanor Leonne Bennett

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These are my work shoes from June 12th. They are brand new, not even a week old. I came to work this morning and saw these in the corner my call room, next to the pile of dirty scrubs.  I had forgotten about them until now. On these shoes, soaked between its fibers, is the blood of 54 innocent human beings. I don't know which were straight, which were gay, which were black, or which were hispanic. What I do know is that they came to us in wave upon wave of suffering, screaming, and death. And somehow, in that chaos, doctors, nurses, technicians, police, paramedics, and others, performed super human feats of compassion and care. This blood, which poured out of those patients and soaked through my scrubs and shoes, will stain me forever. In these Rorschach patterns of red I will forever see their faces and the faces of those that gave everything they had in those dark hours. There is still an enormous amount of work to be done. Some of that work will never end. And while I work I will continue to wear these shoes. And when the last patient leaves our hospital, I will take them off, and I will keep them in my office. I want to see them in front of me every time I go to work. For on June 12, after the worst of humanity reared its evil head, I saw the best of humanity of come fighting right back. I never want to forget that night.

Dr. Joshua Corsa M.D, EMT-P Orlando Regional Medical Center

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Jay

I’ll be 38 next month and I live in Pasadena, California. It’s a walkable cityscape, so I bought these city-stomping shoes because they’re comfortable and flashy. A character in the web-comic xkcd once said “…we’re grown-ups now, and it’s our turn to decide what that means.” That largely represents how I approach life. I resent the nostalgia and short-sightedness of the previous generation. Plus, I’ve always found it exhausting and counter-productive to suppress my enthusiasm and wonder to act “mature.” I’m fortunate to live in a town and work for an employer where a new tattoo, a wild haircut, or flashy shoes are generally welcomed rather than scorned.

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Baltimore. Like me its a problem child. When I travel to Arizona and go in the desert, I can’t help but to think about never coming back. The air is still and quiet there. But how do you forget the place that made you? You don’t. Instead I take Baltimore everywhere I go and walk my truth. I customized these sneakers to let everyone know that Baltimore is still rising.

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Aleks

These sneakers have become pretty worn in the three years I’ve had them. They don’t look like much, but to me, they represent a sort of milestone. I’m a transgender boy, and these were the first shoes made for men that I ever bought. My mom kept insisting that I just buy women’s shoes, that they would fit better and that it didn’t matter, but I bought them anyways, because it did matter. It mattered that I express my identity in any self-validating way. They may just be shoes, but they remind me that I have every right to be myself, in any way that I choose.

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Lee

I never wanted any kids. Life in the fast lane - wild, flirty, and free… Yea… That was the “good life.” From the day I finally met you, it hasn’t been easy… So many tears, sleepless nights, long gloomy days. Regret loomed over my head each day reminding of my past.

I never wanted any kids… But through the dark days, depressive nights, and lost memories of a life I watched helplessly spiral the drain, your big brown eyes shined on me as a beacon of hope…

Yea, I never wanted any kids… I never wanted to fall in love again… I never thought I could hold someone so tenderly,  to be wanted - craved so near. It was a foolish dream to ever think someone could love me back…

Alas, yes, I have a kid, but, my darling daughter, I finally realize, all I really ever needed was you. My heart grows stronger every day with each step we take together. I only dreamed that maybe, someday, what fools call love can be true… You see, my dear Zion Alexander, I found it with you.

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Crystal

This past year has been one of the most challenging yet amazing years of my life. And these black boots have been there for most of the ride. I learned in this past year more about myself, what I want out of life and how I want to get there through my experiences. I’ve created pieces of art, danced the night away, ventured in cities near and far, explored in nature, worked out and pushed myself in the gym, connected with many wonderful people, cried, laughed, and met the love of my life wearing these boots. After everything these boots have been through over these past several months, the sides are starting to open up. The wear and tear is symbolic of just how much I’ve experienced over this past year, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

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Ryan 

These were the shoes I wore during a very trying period in my life. I had been academically suspended from University of Maryland Baltimore County. I was a biology major at the time, but through reflection realized that despite my interest in that field, there were other subjects I found my interesting. I always liked to draw, so I had decided after a semester of wallowing in despair to take my first steps to better myself. I attended Community College of Baltimore County. I eventually was able to earn my Associates of Fine and Performing Arts, and am currently attending UMBC again, as a Visual Arts major in preparation to learn to become an animator. I wore these shoes to take the first steps toward preparing myself for a better future, a future which I was quite uncertain and apprehensive of in the beginning. Without taking those first steps to go back to school I would not be where I am today.

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Norianna 

While on my feet these shoes have gone from Canada and beyond.  While in these shoes I have seen the Niagara Falls and was amazed by the beauty of it all. These shoes have treaded on a sunken port in the Caribbean. From one part of North America to the other theses shoes have gone, to the most magical place on earth and back home again. The adventures these shoes have had I can’t wait to discover where I will go in them next.

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Leslie

I’m always “fashionably late” by at least a few years. I saw a lot of the cool kids wearing Sperry’s in high school and I really wanted a pair. I shopped at Payless all throughout middle school and I often got made fun of for it. I didn’t want a knock off pair. Last year (a year after graduating high school), I used a week’s salary from my summer job to buy a pair of Sperry’s from a store in the mall. I found that I could buy them for $10 cheaper at DSW so I returned them and then repurchased them the next day. I wanted Sperry’s because I wanted to be cool but they’re such a common casual shoe that nobody but me cared when I got them. I wear them almost every day not but not to be cool… they’re really comfortable and go with 95% of my outfits.

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Elsa

I took this photograph because it was my first time getting a converse from my boyfriend when we met 3 years ago. I have a lot of memories with this shoes.