DAVENPORT, IA.- Now on view at the Figge Art Museum Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks, a nationally touring exhibition co-organized by the American Federation of Arts and the Bata Shoe Museum. Future Now brings together nearly 60 inventive, sculptural, and high-tech shoe designs that challenge expectations and redefine the boundaries of what footwear can be.

Blending art, fashion, architecture, gaming, and sustainability, the exhibition includes shoes made from mushroom leather and plastic salvaged from the ocean, 3D-printed prototypes, sculptural heels by Zaha Hadid, and digital designs created for virtual reality. Designers featured include Salehe Bembury, Nike ISPA, Steven Smith, Mr. Bailey, Safa Şahin, RTFKT Studios, and others at the forefront of wearable innovation.

“Shoes are part of our daily lives, but they’re also markers of memory, identity, and imagination,” said Melissa Mohr, Executive Director and CEO of the Figge Art Museum. “This exhibition taps into something universal—something we all share—and uses it to invite bigger questions about how we express ourselves and where we’re headed as a culture.”

The exhibition includes loans from the Bata Shoe Museum’s expansive collection of nearly 15,000 artifacts as well as designs from private collectors, working design studios, and conceptual artists. Through form, material, and message, the works on view invite reflection on the future of fashion, identity, and the planet.

“Innovative design is all around us, and this exhibition makes that point clear. Everyone wears shoes, so it's something universally relatable—but this show invites us to explore the creative thinking behind shoe design and highlights examples at the forefront of innovation,” said Joshua Johnson, Co-Senior Curator at the Figge. “It challenges visitors to think critically about material culture—about where things come from, how they’re made, and what they represent in the digital and physical worlds alike.”

Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks is co-organized by the American Federation of Arts and the Bata Shoe Museum, and curated by Elizabeth Semmelhack, Director and Senior Curator, Bata Shoe Museum. Its presentation at the Figge Art Museum is sponsored by The Current Iowa and Hotel Blackhawk, Kay K. Runge, KK Runge Associates, and B100 The Quad Cities #1 Hit Music Station. The exhibition will be on view through August 31, 2025.