JUST FOR KICKS COMPLETE GUIDE BEYOND SNEAKERS
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complete guide beyond sneakers
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complete guide beyond sneakers
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JUST FOR KICKS COMPLETE GUIDE BEYOND SNEAKERS
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/WHETHER FOR BASKETBALL, TENNIS, RUNNING, CROSS-TRAINING, SKATEBOARDING, OR JUST FOR STYLE. AMERICANS HAVE HAD A CONTINUED LOVE AFFAIR WITH SNEAKERS OVER THE YEARS./ 7
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Throughout the History
What’s next?
Walking biomechanics
The Beauty of Human Foot
Revolution of sport and fashion statement
Footwear consumption waste
08 30
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24 38
48 42 Breakdown
Beyond Sneakerhead
New Revolution
Rarity & Beauty inspires desire
Why does sneakers exist?
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Parts & Proportions
Design meets function
CONTENTS
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IN THE BEGINNING
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THE BEAUTY OF HUMAN FOOT
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HIGH ARCH
NORMAL
FLAT FOOT
HUMAN FOOT COMBINES MECHANICAL COMPLEXITY AND STRUCTURAL STRENGTH / What has 26 bones, 33 joints, 19 muscles, and a bunch of ligaments? A human foot! These parts work together in perfect precision when a person is unaware of any of the parts. What a wonderful machine! A foot may strike the ground 10,000 times a day and cover more than 115,000 miles in a lifetime. An average athlete will generate up to 700 lbs of pressure on a foot in a single leap or stride. There are three energy-storing mechanisms in a foot. As your Achilles tendon stretches when you step down, it is storing energy. The release of energy is when the tendon relaxes and you step off. The arch in your foot flattens when you step down thus storing energy. The arch releases its stored energy when you step off. The third mechanism is the cushion under the heel of the foot. This fatty cushion acts as a shock absorber or stores energy as it is compressed. In running, the foot follows a series of steps: the outer edge of the heel strikes the ground, then it rolls inward so that the weight is shifted to the inside edge of the forefoot, and the arch flattens during this roll to absorb the shock of the foot strike. In walking, the foot follows a different series of steps: the outer edge of the heel strikes the ground, then the foot rolls slowly onto the toes as the foot flattens since it is more relaxed and finally the sole also helps to rock the foot forward toward the toes. Support and drive occur when the foot is in contact with the ground.
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WHY WE ARE WALKING /
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17.3 15.3 12.3 10.2 8.8 5.1
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OTHER
WALK THE DOG
VISITING FRIEND
SCHOOL/ WORK
TO GO HOME
RECREATIONS
PERSONAL ERRANDS
EXERCISE/ HEALTH
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Whether for basketball, tennis, running, skateboarding, or just for style, Americans purchased average 952,173 pairs of sneakers per year.
952,173 PURCHASED PAIRS OF SNEAKERS PER YEAR
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THE AVERAGE HUMAN WALKING SPEED VARIES AROUND 3 MPH (4.8 KM/H) / Human walking is accomplished with a strategy called the double pendulum. During forward motion, the leg that leaves the ground swings forward from the hip. This sweep is the first pendulum. Then the leg strikes the ground with the heel and rolls through to the toe in a motion described as an inverted pendulum. The motion of the two legs is coordinated so that one foot or the other is always in contact with the ground. The process of walking recovers approximately sixty per cent of the energy used due to pendulum dynamics and ground reaction force. Walking differs from a running gait in a number of ways. The most obvious is that during walking one leg always stays on the ground while the other is swinging. In running there is typically a ballistic phase where the runner is airborne with both feet in the air (for bipedals). In walking the body “vaults� over the leg on the ground, raising the center of mass to its highest point as the leg passes the vertical, and dropping it to the lowest as the legs are spread apart. Essentially kinetic energy of forward motion is constantly being traded for a rise in potential energy. In running there is a conversion between kinetic, potential, and elastic energy.
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A FOOT MAY STRIKE THE GROUND 10,000 TIMES A DAY AND COVER MORE THAN 115,000 MILES IN A LIFETIME. 150
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200
400
500
mph 600
700
800
900
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8 MILLION
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FOOTWEAR CONSUMPTION WASTE / The human foot repreatedly hits the ground during any running or walking activity. In order to provide comfort for the foot and relieve the joints of impact shock, the midsole of a sneaker must be able to take repeated “poundings”. At the same time it must be able to restore itself to its original shape in between each foot strike. Once the midsole fails to absorb shock, sneakers should be replaced. For the average person, that would mean replacing sneakers every six months. That translates to two pairs of sneakers trashed, recycled, or donated each year. Overall, in 2008, the US generated some 8 million tons of waste from footwear and clothing—approximately 54 pounds per person. But more than what happens to sneakers that die, there are other production-related environmental problems associated with these comfy shoes.
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ANNUALLY U.S. GENERATED 8,000,000 TONS OF WASTE FROM FOOTWEAR & CLOTHING— APPROXIMATELY 54 LBS. PER PERSON.
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54 lbs. 23
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334,174 956,173
329,608
28,094
294,606
118,903
Athletic/ Sneakers Juvenilles’ Slippers Other Men’s Women’s
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EXPENDITURE ON FOOTWEAR & SNEAKER / Footwear is a huge and increasingly diversified business, driven by a host of demographic, lifestyle and fashion trends. As a result, the industry is being segmented ever more finely as seen in the diversity of mainstream footwear trends - from casual comfort to sexy stiletto, and the fact that, in recent years, a far greater range of styles has become acceptable in the U.S. workplace. The liberalization of footwear norms coincided with an era of greed and seemingly endless conspicuous consumption where $150 sneakers and $500 pumps were easily consumed with ever-expanding consumer credit. However, with a new economic reality comes a paradigm shift in the consumer mindset. For some consumers, charge now and pay later has been replaced with pay now or don’ t buy at all. Instead of feeling good about expensive or ostentatious brands as they have in the past, many consumers will increasingly feel good about getting the best value, making the smartest choice, or not spending at all in 2009. The surge in frugality has brought back a variety of money-saving behaviors from days of yore, such as layaway and home cooked meals. Even cobblers are making a comeback.
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02 THE LEGENDS
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THROUGHOUT THE HISTORY //
1907 spalding started to produce sport shoes
1892 Goodyear begins to manufacture rubber and canvas shoes under Keds as the best name.
1800’s The first rubber-soled shoes, called plimsolls, were manufactured
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Ethiopian Abebe Bikila on his way to gold in the 1960 Olympic marathon running barefoot
OXFORD, 1954: Roger Bannister crosses the finish line, running a mile in 3:59.4, in thin leather slippers
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THE BIRTH OF THE LIFESTYLE //
1991 high-tech PUMA disc system sport shoe
1987 The first Nike Air Max shoes are released
1985 Nike AirJordan
1982 Nike Air Force One 1979 Keds brand
1917 Converse all stars
1908 M. Converse establishes Converse shoe company
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Sneakers first appeared in the 1890s when the U.S. Rubber Company began manufacturing rubbersoled canvas shoes. “Keds” were mass-marketed in 1916 and advertising for the new brand touted the shoes’ quiet soles and the wearer’s ability to “sneak up” behind someone -- hence the nickname. In 1917, Massachusetts businessman Marquis Converse revolutionized the industry by introducing one of the first shoes specifically designed for basketball, a sport only 26 years old. A year later, the Converse All Star found its way onto the feet of Charles “Chuck” Taylor, an All American high school player who would go on to shoot hoops for the Original Celtics, Buffalo Germans and Akron Firestones. In 1921, Taylor received an offer to promote Converse shoes. Converse hired the twentyyear-old and Taylor became one of America’s first player endorsers. Known as the “Ambassador of Basketball,” Taylor spent decades traveling the country on an “evangelist tour,” teaching and spreading the word about the game.
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COLORS, STYLES, FASHIONS, AND WHAT IS LIKELY TO BE “HOT” IMPORTANT FACTORS IN THE DESIGN OF ATHLETIC SHOES.
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REVOLUTION OF SPORT AND FASHION STATEMENT //
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INDIVIDUAL LIFESTYLE, SPORTS, AND STYLE ARE FUSED TOGETHER BY CREATIVITY
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In 1974, Converse releases the Converse One Star line of shoes, representing the lifestyles of Indie athletes; individuals whose lifestyle, sports and style are fused together by creativity, imagination and self-expression.
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“AS A DESIGNER AND SNEAKERHEAD, I’M REALLY AMPED ABOUT INITIAL LAUNCH COLLECTION AND THE CREATIVE, FRESH NEW SNEAKER DESIGNS. THERE’S SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE – AND FOR EVERY SKATE LIFESTYLE OCCASION FROM THE VERT RAMP TO THE BEACH” JEFF STAPLE
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The question facing sneakerhead culture is whether it can continue to sustain itself. It has always been a movement brazenly based on conspicuous consumption and excess— a volatile mix in our current economic climate. Add in the dispassionate and inflated world of reselling and you have to wonder how sneakerheads will adapt.
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BEYOND SNEAKERHEADS // The sneaker subculture has also attracted the attention of big companies like Nike Inc., which see the shoe-collecting community as a way to gauge the latest fashions and boost their brands among young trend-setters. “Sneakerheads are a different breed,” one snekerhead explains, who insures his collection for an amount he declined to disclose. “Any sane person only needs two pairs of shoes at a time, but we have 10 or more or even hundreds.” Collectibles easily run into the hundreds of dollars with vintage models, and limited-edition sneakers or anything related to basketball legend Michael Jordan are typically worth more. Sneakerheads say their hobby is no different than collecting stamps or baseball cards. And much like a rare coin, a hard-to-find pair of vintage sneakers in good condition can prove to be a better investment than a blue-chip stock
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WHY DO SNEAKERS EXIST?
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28% 30% 14%
Comfortable
Looks
Protect feet
MORE THAN JUST GYM SHOES // Although they became staples of upper- and middle-class wardrobes around the world, sneakers remained limited to athletic environments. That changed in the 1950s when a brooding James Dean appeared on screen. Instead of a slick movie star suit, Dean’s signature look consisted of a white T-shirt, blue jeans and a pair of Converse Jack Purcells, named after the badminton champion of the 1930s. With Dean’s help, sneakers made the leap from function to fashion and cemented its association with youth, rebellion and coolness. Even with the icon’s seal of approval, however, athletic shoes still didn’t receive the amount of attention they do now. It took a movement more influential, more magnetic, for sneakers to become the money-making industry of today. It took hip-hop.
They are more than just shoes, nostalgia, or a fashion statement. The history of Converse shoes spans the history of 20th century America and the evolution of basketball. Converse shoes revolutionized the sport of basketball and witnessed the birth of rock and roll. Sixty percent of all American own or have owned at least one pair of Converse sneakers.
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SHOES ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE B-BOY LOOK. SPORT SNEAKERS THAT ARE STYLING AND COMFORTABLE—RONNIE ABALDONADO
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RARITY AND BEAUTY INSPIRES DESIRE // Sneakerheads collect sneakers—they call them kicks—but they seldom bother with the ones you can buy at a mall. They are on the search for the Holy Grail, that hallowed pair that, for reasons of rarity or beauty or both, inspires near-obsessive desire. They want something average shoppers can’t get. “For a while, the sneakers available in D.C. were just very cookie-cutter, very vanilla,” said Duk-ki Yu, a co-owner of Major. “Sophisticated shoe buyers aren’t going to go for that. There was a niche that wasn’t being filled, and retailers weren’t realizing that D.C. has its own unique style.” Sneakers have long been identified as one of the material icons of hip-hop culture. But as the sneakerhead subculture evolved, according to its denizens, it began to stray from hip-hop and develop its own aesthetic. “There are basic elements to the sneaker collector look: sneakers, obviously, fitted hat, hoodie, jeans,” one sneakerheads mentioned. “It borrows freely from both the skater and hip-hop look. It’s such a mash of cultures.”
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03 DESIGN MEETS FUNCTION
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STRUCTURE MAKES DIFFERENCE /// A sneaker is normally provided at its heel portion with an elastic element which is capable of supporting the wearer’s weight and cushion the pressure. Vary kinds of elastic units used on the sneaker have become the sneaker producer’s sellingpoint. Hence, how to make a better elastic element that can satisfy the wearer’s needs has become the most important thing in the sneaker manufacturing trade. Most of the sneakers on the market are installed in its heel portion with an integral heel cushion structure which is made by elastic ejection, so that the heel block is able to support the weight and to produce a cushion effect. The preferable design is to make an air chamber (so-called air sneaker) inside the heel block.
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7 Last
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11
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1. Upper; 2. Toe cap; 3. Vamp; 4. Eyesay; 5. Tongue; 6. Collar; 7. Heel Counter; 8. Toespring; 9. Arch; 10. Midsole; 11. Outsole.
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PARTS AND PROPORTIONS /// Every parts of the sneaker shoes are designed with aim to give maximum comfort to the user. Plus, they cater the requirements of the user, to the maximum. There are variety of styles and shades in each type of sneaker shoes. The sneakers can also find their collaboration with other styles of shoes as well. Even, every man often devotes enough time in choosing jeans, paired with sneakers. The sneakers get you the perfect shape with the best features for your all activities. They are manufactured with materials like canvas, leather and the fine suede. Especially, the canvas sneakers are made with the eco-friendly materials. The hook and loop, ladder lock and the lace-up styles are used in the sneakers for the best fit. The construction of the soles demand more concentration and the soles give more flexibility and durability, which provide the excellent traction during the gait.
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34% Natural Cotton
24%
Synthetic Fibers
66% Natural Leather
WHAT THEY ARE MADE OF ///
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80% Elastic Rubber
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BREAKDOWN ///
UPPER It serves to hold the shoe together, as well as to secure and protect the foot. It is designed to be as lightweight as possible and yet perform its function
INSERT It acts as the support mechanism for the foot, particularly the arch.
MIDSOLE The primary cushioning component that was formerly a rubber structure, and is now commonly rubber, air, or fluid gels.
OUTSOLE It is designed to provide traction and prevent wear.
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LOVE AFFAIR WITH SNEAKERS HAS MOVED BEYOND A RELATIVELY SIMPLE SHOE FETISH TO FULL-BLOWN OBSESSION. 62
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RECYCLED TRAINER SHOES CAN BE USED AS GROUND DOWN TO BECOME SPORTS COURTS, TRACKS AND PLAYING SURFACES
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04
NEW REVOLUTION
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INNER CENTER SOLE 64% where foot step in mostly when walking or running.
64%
36% INNER MIDDLE SOLE 36% of the step occurs around here while walking or running.
WHAT IS S.T.E.P (SENSORY TECHNOLOGY FOR ENERGY PRODUCTION) //// Every parts of the sneaker shoes are designed with aim to give maximum comfort to the user. Plus, they cater the requirements of the user, to the maximum. There are variety of styles and shades in each type of sneaker shoes. The idea of using recyclable materials for every parts of the sneaker has already been accomplished. However, to use the idea of generating energy from walking or running which creates kinetic energy is still in the process. So, taking sneaker as an eco-friendly product and revamp it to be even friendlier is the original idea behind S.T.E.P (Sensor Technology Energy Production). Using motion and gravity sensor combined with piezoelectric accelerometer, S.T.E.P is designed to store your kinetic enegry from walking or running and use it later for portable power source.
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PROCESS OF RENOVATION //// Step is designed to be used with any sneaker. With clip on technology for the transmitter and receiver, Step is meant to fullfil our needs for comfort wearing sneakers. Piezoelectric accelerometer device that is put inside the transmitter is for calculating how much energy used and produced while we’re walking as well as storing that energy into the receiver that can be used to recharge any electronic device.
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LET’S DEFINE THE NEXT S.T.E.P
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RECEIVER PERSPECTIVE
Energy level display
LED meter
Recycled Plastic (Polypropylene)
Biodegradeable mold
Piezoelectric sensor
Motion sensor
Energy storage Sensor
INSOLE TRANSMITTER
Insole cushion
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Piezoelectric sensor
FRONT PANEL
BACK PANEL
ENERGY LEVEL Clip-on attachment
Kinetic panel
TOP VIEW
LEFT SIDE
RIGHT SIDE
Step is designed using piezoelectric accelerometer technology to calculate how far you walk and how much energy you spent and produced then storing them into a receiver for later usage to power up any small to medium electronic devices.
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ENERGY LEVEL
ENERGY L
2.75"
0.65"
0.9"
0.65"
INSOLE TRANSMITTER
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1.45"
0.9"
1.45
KNOW YOUR STEP////
Recycled Plastic (Polypropylene)
Biodegradeable mold
Transmitter outlet
USB outlet
Recycled cabel
Motion sensor
Piezoelectric circuit
Recycled cloth for cushion skin
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6.4
28,527
WATTS PER STEP
STEPS PER DAY
HOW IT WORKS //// As you walk or run wearing your sneaker, your feet will hit the ground around 28,527 times and from that movement our step generates approximately 6.4 watt energy based on the equation of kinetic energy that our body produced. Some of those energy are becoming even with the energy that our body spends to walk or run, but with the technology of piezoaccelerometer that step has those energy will be stored in the receiver and can be used later to power up any small to medium electronic devices.
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LIFECYCLES ////
28,527 STEPS PER DAY
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0.25 WATTS PER STEP
7200 WATTS
LED meter
Insole Transmitter
3.5 HRS
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COLOPHON ///// R3 PROJECT Art Director : Tom Sieu Designer & Illustrator : Teddy Kurniawan Photography : Matt Woolman, Tom Meyer, Flickr Tools : Adobe Creative Suite 4 Typeface : Headings/ Callouts > DIN Family,
Body copy > Neutra Text Family,
Footer > Meridien
Printing : Giant Horse Binding : Taurus Book Bindery Paper : Smooth Finch Fine 100# text, Hardcover
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GLOSSARY Air Cushion Merrell : Chamber that forces air as a cushion. Archtech : Midfoot shank device causes the shoe to return to a stable base, after allowing the foot to twist in its natural movement, during the gait cycle (Puma). Boot : Any footwear extending above the ankle. BRS 1000 : IDurable carbon rubber compound (Nike) Canvas : A heavy, coarse, closely woven fabric of cotton, hemp, or flax, used for tents and sails. Clog : A thick soled, sometimes back-less shoe sometimes with leather upper. Collar :Area around the ankle that’s padded for fit and comfort.
Counter : CA piece of heavy leather or other stiffening material inserted between the outside and the lining of the upper at the back part of the shoe. Doubler : An interlining placed between the toe lining and the vamp of a shoe. DRC : Durable Rubber Compound. A blend of solid rubber with additives that offer extra durability for rough and abrasive surfaces. EVA : EVA is soft, light and flexible. It is the least expensive midsole material and is often used in entry-level shoes. Heel : The back part of any covering for the foot. Usually it refers to the solid part projecting downward from the back part of the sole of a shoe. Insole : Leather (or a related material) which is cut to conform to the size and shape of the bottom of the last.
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ACKNOLEDGEMENTS: I would like to thank all those who have contributed to and made this book possible. So many people have shown generosity and insight that it is impossible to list them all. My deepest gratitude go to Tom Sieu ,Danya Winterman, and Giant Horse Printing who have made this book become a complete piece. Also, my fellow classmates for support and critiques that have helped to made this book become a finished piece. In addition, I can’t thank enough my parents who have supported so far and made me become who I am. Last but not least, everyone who has contributed their time to photograph and wrote the text that made this book possible.
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