Keen Honors Jerry Garcia With a Collection of Shoes Inspired By His Artwork
Keen is honoring legendary musician Jerry Garcia with a limited-edition footwear collection.
In collaboration with Garcia’s family, the outdoor brand announced today that will reimagine its signature Newport sandal and Uneek sneaker-sandal with artwork from the late Grateful Dead vocalist himself. The collection drops on Aug. 1 at Keenfootwear.com with prices for each pair listed as $150.
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The Newport and Uneek will both be offered in two different colorways inspired by a pair of Garcia’s paintings, “New York at Night” and “Banyan Tree,” in men’s and women’s sizing. The boxes as well will feature handcrafted artwork created by the musician before he passed away in 1995.
The outdoor brand explained in a release that Garcia attended the San Francisco Art Institute and had devoted himself to continue his painting skills in between tours, though he never considered his visual art something that should “be taken seriously.”
A portion of the proceeds from the collection will benefit the non-partisan HeadCount organization, which encourages voter registration through the use of music, organizing at thousands of music festivals and events annually, as part of its Vote Love campaign.
RELATED: Stylish Grateful Dead Shoes and Merch to Shop.
The brand additionally announced it will be releasing Keen x Jerry Garcia limited-edition bags as well as face masks in the near future. The bags will include three unique designs, each limited to an edition of 500. On the interior of the bags, the brand will include a woven label with each bag’s individual edition number, making it a collectible piece for the most dedicated of DeadHeads. The accompanying face masks will once more highlight Garcia’s art in a washable and reusable face-covering design. The brand has yet to announce price points or release dates for these two products.
The brand will also honor Garcia with a “Rock My Soul: A Jerry Garcia Birthday Celebration,” on the Fans streaming service in celebration of what would have been the singer’s 78th birthday. The musical event takes place again on Aug. 1 from 1 p.m. to 1 a.m ET.
In addition to Keen, brands such as Nike, Sanuk, Chaco and others have honored the Grateful Dead with their interpretation of the band through footwear designs.
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