"What we've been seeing is the evolution of culture, that it's all starting to evolve and intertwine together. We see fashion. We see art. We see luxury all playing in the same field."
ADVERTISEMENTSotheby's have announced they will be holding their first sneaker auction this month.
The New York-based auction company will welcome bids online for 100 pairs of the rarest trainers.
One pair that will be on sale is a sample of one of the first Nike running shoes. Pre-sale estimates expect the trainers to fetch a price of $160,000 (€142,165).
Another shoe that will feature is the Nike "Moon Shoe", which was handmade by Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman for the 1972 Olympic trials. Just a dozen of these trainers were produced.
"He was making these sneakers with a waffle iron literally. The tread on the soul is from a waffle iron that he handmade," explained Noah Wunsch, global head of eCommerce at Sotheby's.
Wunsch underlined the significance of sneakers in the contemporary cultural market.
"I think it's a really fascinating time in the world, period, where it's it's not so much sneaker culture, it's just culture. What we've been seeing is the evolution of culture, that it's all starting to evolve and intertwine together. We see fashion. We see art. We see luxury all playing in the same field."
No shoes made for women will feature, however, Sotheby's expect to see plenty of female bidders nonetheless.