I’m sure you remember BMW’s funky GINA concept car from 2008. If you don’t, it was possibly one of the most interesting concept cars from any brand in recent memory. Instead of metal body panels, the GINA had a sort of fabric-like skin over the entire car. This “skin” stretched across metal metal bars and gave the GINA a body style that could actually be changed. The headlights, for instance, would open like eyelids as the skin open up, revealing the lights. So it was a bit weird.
Thank Chris Bangle, the man behind the GINA’s design, for its weirdness, as he wasn’t afraid of pushing the envelope. But now, if you’re a fan of the GINA and PUMA, you can thank Chris Bangle again, as his GINA design has inspired a new sneaker.
Developed with BMW’s Designworks, PUMA’s new BMW X-Cat Disc sneakers are the brand’s latest BMW-related design and probably the strangest. They look like sneakers someone aboard the USS Enterprise would wear on their day off. With the outside of the sneaker made from a single piece of shiny metallic fabric, PUMA nailed the intended design, as it’s clearly based on the GINA. It also lacks laces and has a series of wires that run through the sneaker, under the skin just like the GINA. Those wires are tightened or loosened by the turn of a disc on the tongue of the shoe. The front of the sneaker also has a sort of pattern on it that’s similar to the new BMW Vision NEXT 100 Concept.
The rolled heal allows for easier pedal work, as do other PUMA/BMW sneakers, so they do actually make for good driver’s shoes. While they may not be the best looking sneakers ever made, they are certainly different and interesting and definitely represent a unique BMW concept. The BMW GINA concept is something that really stands out and so do these PUMAs.
[Source: Autoblog]
