UNCW graduate wins Nike shoe design contest
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - A UNC Wilmington studio art graduate won a contest with Nike and the shoe she helped create goes on sale later this week.
Charlene Eckels graduated in 2014. Nike selected Eckels from thousands of applicants to join a group of designers creating shoes for the next Nike By You Community Sneaker Drop.
The shoe she co-created is inspired by Eckels’ Bolivian heritage. The colors for her Nike React Element 55 “paraba” (parrot) design honor the parrots in the Amazon that have endured fires and deforestation.
“I feel grateful and blessed to be chosen by @wearecultivator and @nike....” Eckels wrote on her website. “Thank you for giving me a platform to speak on something close to me. To be able to talk about the Bolivian Amazon where my maternal family has lived for over a century.”
Eckels’s shoe retails for $140 and goes on sale through an online storefront which goes live on Nov. 1.
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