Leather and shoes

In 2009 there was an exhibition of Suhandan Özay at the Dutch Leather and Shoes Museum in Waalwijk. Suhandan Özay has played an important role in the Fashion & Accessories-program at the department of Textile arts of the Dokuz Eylül University in Izmir, Turkey. From 1996 onwards, she specialized in ‘fiber art works’, for which she learned how to make paper. Suhandan Özay researched new weaving techniques and modern woven art, ethnic and contemporary jewelry and accessories. She uses the results and new insights from her research in her designs. Currently Ozäy works in her Alacati atelier in Turkey. She also teaches and is the head of the Textile department at the Dokuz Eylül University. The mini-exposition in Waalwijk shows 40 pairs of shoes by Özay, including both examples from the fairytale series of Downy Trunk Wedding Shoes and the series of Çariklar-Anatolian Shoes, showing Özay’s vision on the traditional Turkish ‘Çarik’ shoes.