ARS SUTORIA final feedback footwear design | 15 april 2010 When I was deciding to take part in this 3 months course last year I looked everywhere for some opinions. I couldn't find many. So I hope these few words will be somehow helpful... Short feedback is this - if my son has an interest in shoes when he grows up I will send him there for sure. For more constructive one read below. More than 90% of American shoe brands produce outside the US; there is hardly any shoe production left there. As we all know Asia is the biggest shoe manufacturer. Because of this some types of jobs are slowly disappearing in US or Europe. For example - you don't need many pattern makers in the company headquarters because it's cheaper and faster to make it directly in the factory, you don't need people who know how to last the shoes or people who can cut leather properly. It's just the way it is now. 20-30 years ago every shoe designer was a pattern maker the same time. He had the factory next to his office and most of the time was an expert in shoe production. He could even make the sample himself. It is still common for the designers working with leather shoes but it's not the case in bigger companies with factories located in the far East. So my point is... who needs a proper shoe making education today? Most of the young shoe designers are coming from two fields: fashion or industrial design. Do they need to know what are the right last proportions to be able to create cool stuff. No, they don't. My and your task as a designer is to be creative. That's it... not to make or to sell things. Should we care about skills we don't really need? This is something you have to decide yourself. For me this course was one of the best decisions I made in my life. Simply because I feel much more confident about what I'm doing now than I did before. Here is my detailed feedback about Ars Sutoria 10 weeks course: I LIKED: + teachers. They are what this school is about. They have great experience and they are truly passionate about shoes. + program, based on Lunati school of pattern making. You will cover many M's and W's type of shoes, as well as lasts, materials, grading. + the fact that it takes 10 weeks. you really need this. + it's practical, you learn by making and cutting things yourself + exam and proper diploma I DIDN'T LIKE: - the price - the fact that there is no book that you can use during the course. Taking notes is the only way to remember. - rather poor lasts and leather selection for samples. - program covers only cemented shoe constructions - no information up front about what and when you will learn. A simple calendar would help a lot. General comment to have in mind - the course is fantastic but you can feel it's not that modern. It's about classic shoe constructions like Derby or Oxford, definitely not about sneakers. 3 weeks prototyping course is an additional module. You will make 2-3 shoes during that course based on your design but on provided soles and lasts. It's worth it if someone has an interest to see how shoes are made and learn something about the production. I enjoyed it a lot but frankly speaking it wasn't that well organized. So to summarize... I would definitely recommend Ars Sutoria to anyone who wants to work with leather shoes as a designer or modelist or anyone who wants to be an independent designer. This school has 60 years tradition and a very good reputation. There is a reason for it. If you can afford it... do it. It's worth it. models I designed and made during first and second course.