Leave it to Balenciaga to take sneaker chunkiness to new extremes, debuting cartoonishly oversized Cargo trainers down the Paris Fashion Week runway. While models strode in familiar Knife pumps and leather boots, the sneakers made a bold statement with their inflated, funhouse mirror proportions. From their thick platform soles to exaggerated mesh uppers, the shoes seemed deliberately scaled-up to occupy maximum real estate.
The Cargo builds upon Balenciaga’s preference for bulky,dadcore silhouettes, making even the Triple S feel svelte by comparison. With their puffed-up construction and vague “B” logo, the sneakers projected a playful exaggeration of the house codes. Aside from black, colorful versions popped against mostly monochrome looks.
Placed next to the collection’s skinny trousers and hoodies, the sneakers appeared surreally massive. Their distortion seemed a wry commentary on menswear and proportion play. Despite the height, models handled them with poise down the catwalk.
Immediately available for purchase, the sneakers make a provocative statement about the house’s tongue-in-cheek ethos. Only Balenciaga would dare debut a style so brazenly detached from standard footwear scales. They seem primed for viral meme status.
While pumps and boots largely ruled the runway, a few other silhouettes subtly emerged. Leather derbies were carried by hand, while fuzzy mules and deflated ballet flats offered artful contrast to the Cargo’s bulk. In exaggerated footwear realms, Balenciaga continues to reign supreme.
