LCF MA26 | MA Fashion Footwear
- Written byS Williams
- Published date 17 February 2026
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MA Fashion Footwear at London College of Fashion (LCF), UAL brings together designers who are curious about what shoes can say, do, and become. Rather than working within traditional boundaries, students experiment freely, testing materials, questioning familiar forms, and shaping ideas through hands‑on making. Their work often begins with simple questions about the body, identity, or daily life and evolves into thoughtful, sometimes unexpected explorations.
This year’s cohort brings a thoughtful, exploratory spirit to their work. Their projects span everything from material-led experiments to concept-driven prototypes. Yet they share a common thread: a desire to question what footwear communicates and how it shapes our movement, identity, and everyday experience.
Below is a preview of the imaginative and ambitious work featured in this year’s LCF MA26 | School of Design and Technology Exhibition – a dynamic showcase exploring artefact, footwear, technology, production, and fashion futures.
“MA Footwear balances concept and craft – critical thinking and thinking through making. Students from varied design backgrounds are encouraged to define what footwear means today, and to expand what it can be through rigorous questioning, research, and prototyping. We cultivate a critical studio culture in which students lead their own lines of enquiry, informed by diverse cultural perspectives and supported through tutorials, workshops, and peer critique. Through this process, we explore how social, political, cultural, and technological forces shape new approaches to footwear and the body. Recent projects range from reinterpreting established typologies to proposing new systems, materials, and experiences – spanning craft, health, sustainability, performance, and speculative practice.” – Eelko Moorer, Course Leader, MA Footwear.
At the exhibition, MA Fashion Footwear presents new ideas rather than just a product display. Here, shoes go beyond simple function; they become tools for connection, memory, and imagination. The works invite you to consider walking, feeling, endurance, and desire, and how shoes connect us to the world and to different cultures.
Students are challenging us to see shoes as active and responsive – more like living systems than objects. Some designs react to pressure, shift your balance, and change how you move. Iniayan Annadurai’s ‘UN-IDENTICAL’, for example, uses a 3D-printed lattice to fit each wearer and act like a second skin. Other projects challenge comfort on purpose. Yiqiao Li’s brand ‘STAGGER’ introduces imbalance, sound, and resistance to everyday movement, prompting you to think about each step and become more aware of your body. Walking here feels intentional, sometimes playful, sometimes challenging.
Sustainability here goes beyond buzzwords; it's built into every part of the design process. Many shoes in the exhibition are designed to come apart easily, using joinery instead of glue, and are made from single materials that can be recycled and reused. Some projects, like Ben Evans’ ‘Asambl system,’ turn shoes into platforms that can be repaired, changed, or shared. Others, like Zhen Wang’s ‘’AHTRAGA, use modular design to bridge the gap between creative ideas and practical use. You’ll see both working prototypes and bold experiments that show how footwear can continue to evolve and invite people to fix, rethink, and reinvent rather than throw it away.
In another part of the exhibition, the focus shifts to ritual, memory, and belief. Here, shoes bring together the sacred and the sensual, blending home rituals with hidden desires. In Sarwarish Singh’s ‘Charan-sparsh’, everyday objects from Hindu puja ceremonies are transformed into powerful artworks that connect Eastern respect for the feet with Western ideas of fetishism. These pieces invite you to think about how different cultures treat feet; whether as objects of respect, desire, control, or neglect, and what it means to carry these mixed feelings with us.
Some projects in the exhibition use storytelling to create strong emotions. In these works, shoes become symbols in imagined worlds; like relics from mysterious cults, each design shows a stage of change or devotion. Lexx Hoggett’s ‘The Path of Scarlet Skin’, for example, imagines a group in which people become shoes to gain eternal life, with long shapes and hand-dyed leather that bring fantasy to life through careful craftsmanship. On the other hand, Benn John’s ‘Lithiumcript’ treats shoes as records of real-life journeys: hiking boots that show their travels through wear, creases, and marks collected over time. Here, shoes hold memories by touching the ground, not by words or writing.
Personal stories and family relationships are explored through creative shoe designs. Footwear becomes a way to share stories about inheritance, femininity, and emotional conflict. In Lu Zhou’s ‘The Umbilical Cord’, shoes are used in film, performance, and installations to examine the complex bond between mothers and daughters in Chinese culture, combining materials such as ceramic and iron with leather's softness and hardness. Comfort is set aside to highlight real emotions, encouraging viewers to see shoes as storytelling tools rather than just products.
Sports and performance are part of the story as well, with a new focus on physical care. Aqib Mirza’s ‘HAFI’ introduces football boots inspired by barefoot movement. These boots are designed to support foot health, balance, and long-term comfort, while still offering speed, grip, and control. Features such as wide toe boxes, flexible shapes, and designs inspired by diverse cultures signal a future where success in sport is also about keeping the body safe and healthy.
There is a well-rounded selection of MA Fashion Footwear on show in the LCF MA26 | School of Design and Technology Postgraduate Exhibition – a place where shoes are more than objects. Here, footwear sparks ideas, tells stories, and shows new ways of thinking. Visitors can explore at their own pace, noting how touch, movement, and meaning come together in each piece. Whether you’re interested in craft, performance, sustainability, design, or culture, this exhibition invites you on a hands-on journey that begins with shoes and extends to broader questions.
The LCF MA26 | School of Design and Technology Postgraduate Exhibition is open from 17–24 February 2026. Monday–Saturday, 10am–5pm at London College of Fashion, UAL, East Bank campus.
- Read more LCF Stories.
- Explore more MA Fashion Footwear graduate work on UAL Showcase