Sneaker Design
Low profile / TrailRunner
the America's Cup.
The Prada America’s Cup sneaker is a luxury shoe originally designed in the late 1990s for Prada’s Luna Rossa sailing team. Known for its sleek, performance-inspired design and distinctive rubber sole, it blends sport heritage with high-fashion craftsmanship and has become a modern style icon.
Sailing Sport.
The America’s Cup is an elite competitive sailing sport where teams race high-performance yachts on open water. It’s known for intense tactics, cutting-edge boat technology, and extreme speed, combining athletic skill, engineering, and strategy in head-to-head races.
Iconic Sneaker.
The Prada America’s Cup sneaker is iconic because it was one of the first shoes to merge high fashion with real sports performance, redefining what a luxury sneaker could be in the late 1990s. Its clean, futuristic design and authentic sailing roots set it apart from traditional athletic sneakers and helped pave the way for today’s luxury sneaker culture.
Focus.
The aim is to create a recently trending 'low profile' element into the already iconic sneaker, the america's cup. the silhouette is rooted in its sailing origin, and the luxury felling of the Prada brand.
the outsole focuses on the low profile silhouette, making it as low to the ground as possible, while maintaining the wavy key lines of the sneakers, and the iconic red stip logo from Prada.
3D modeling in Gravity Sketch
The outsole of the sneaker plays a vital part as it defines what kind of sneaker it is, To suit the ‘‘low-profile’’ sneaker category, the outsole is low to the ground, almost non-existance, But with a little bit of foot bed support and sometimes wrap over the toe box area.
Using Gravity Sketch in Quest 3, a 3D visual helps me envision the model way easier than traditional 2D modeling.
Fitting.
Using Rhino and Gravity sketch to check the shape and mold the outsole to fit the last perfectly,
the stack height of the front and the back has little difference, making it a low to the ground feet experience.
Always Weather Ready
FILA WaterProof TrailRunners
City where humidity is part of the usual.
In cities like Taipei, where the climate is consistently humid, hot, and marked by frequent rainfall, urban residents often encounter wet and slippery conditions in both daily commutes and weekend outdoor activities. This observation, drawn from Taipei’s weather patterns, highlights the need for footwear that can handle moisture-heavy environments. Waterproof trail running shoes are especially well-suited for this target audience, as they are designed to keep feet dry while providing enhanced grip on uneven or slick surfaces.
Outdoor and Urban Use.
For city dwellers living in damp climates, these shoes offer a practical balance between everyday usability and outdoor performance, making them an ideal choice for navigating both urban streets and nearby trails.
Fusion Utility.
Working people in Taiwan demands more for their shoes, due to the weather and humidity in the cities. With outdoor utility becoming mainstream, it is transforming into something thats is both functional for outdoor activities and also casual wear for commuting in the citires.
Inspo/ Reference.
Focus.
Further exploration to find the best shape and look for a outdoor functionality and buisness casual fusion.
the outdole is crusial in this design, seperating it from just a outdoor functioning trailer into a dual-environment sneaker.
Colorway.
Designed to handle humid climates and cities where rain andpuddles are part of daily life. The waterproof feature keeps feet dry and comfortable, making it ideal for both urban movement and light outdoor use. The colorway—brown, deep green, and orange—takes inspiration from nature, symbolizing earth, forest, and energy, giving the shoe a strong outdoor identity while remaining easy to style in the city.
Dune Beige (Brown)
Urban Moss (Green)
Autumn Ember (Orange)
Design and Built by
Shih, Wei-Yu
Portfolio 2025
contact
(+886) 978259315
italkwilliam@gmail.com
