Paulina Marquez wouldn’t want you to think she’s bragging, but she’s known since she was 8 years old that she’s a good artist.
The seventh-grader from East Los Angeles has never really known what to do about it.
When three weeks ago Paulina, 12, found herself in Manhattan Beach for the first time in her life, she was excited about more than just the novelty of being invited to Skechers’ shiny, brand spanking new corporate headquarters on the east side of Sepulveda Boulevard – a building that many residents are still itching to get a peek of.
For the first time in her life, Paulina saw a future she never thought possible.
“This is amazing,” she says. “I’ve always loved to draw and design and I think I have a talent for it. Now after being here, I think maybe I could pursue a career in fashion design…maybe shoes. Or clothing.”
Paulina is one of 25 six through eighth grade students from Griffith Middle School in East L.A. who are learning how to design and develop shoes in a four-week workshop with Skechers designer David Raysse. The workshop is also serving as a pilot for a national course based on Raysse’s curriculum that will be rolled out in March by After School All-Stars, an organization founded by former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that provides programs to 80,000 low-income, at-risk youth in the country.
At the end of the national course, kids from 450 schools nationwide will get to submit shoe designs to Skechers. The top five finalists will be chosen by Raysse, and those will go to a FaceBook vote. The designer of the winning shoe will get a scholarship and her or his shoe will be made into a prototype and possibly manufactured and put on the market.
“This is one of those careers that is so mysterious and abstract to kids,” Raysse says. “For them to see it as an actual career for someone lets them see they might be able to do it. I wish somebody had let me know early on. The reality is we should start showing them these things now.”
The project is the result of a collaborative effort between All Stars and The Skechers Foundation, which aims to support organizations that provide children and families around the world with the necessities and skills to succeed in life.
Skechers’ president Michael Greenberg said that the foundation wants to help fulfill education needs in the face of continuing budget cuts that schools have endured in recent years. He hopes that the experience will open students’ eyes to a new world of career possibilities.
Since the students’ first class with Raysse the prior week, he has heard that they are curious about how he comes up with the idea for a shoe and starts designing it.
Raysse lays down a large piece of white butcher paper and grabs a black marker. The kids get out of their chairs and crowd near him. He asks them to start by thinking about what kind of shoe they should make.
“A dance shoe? A running shoe? A basketball shoe? Anybody seen the new Kobe?”
The kids agree on a basketball shoe, and then starts the next round of questions.
“Should we start with a high-top? Laces? Straps? Velcro?”
The kids start to realize there is a lot more that goes into shoe-making than they realized.
Raysse also tells them that they don’t have to become Van Goghs to become shoe designers.
“It doesn’t matter if your sketches aren’t perfect,” he says. “The idea is to communicate an idea.”
Raysse asks the kids to take out their homework from the prior week – sheets with the outlines of 12 shoes printed on them. The kids were supposed to design and color the shoes.
Some designs are full of colors. Others have holiday themes. Some are half completed. Many have not been colored at all.
Paulina’s stands out immediately. And everyone knows it.
Raysse listens intently as she explains her design concept to him.
“I tried to make the colors blend here,” she says, meticulously going over her 12 designs. “Here, I just used a basic shape. There’s a peace sign for a ‘peace’ theme on these and these are for St. Patrick’s Day. Here, I used…”
“A more traditional plaid?” Raysse finishes.
“Yeah,” she smiles.
Raysse tells Paulina she has an amazing sense of color pattern and no one’s arguing.
“She could get a job as a colorist right now,” he says later.
All Stars art teacher Angelica Garcia said that not only is this the first time the Griffith kids have ever met a real-life fashion designer, but the first time most have ever stepped foot in a corporate office. Garcia said the kids were ecstatic during their first class last week, when Raysse gave them a tour of the entire building, including his personal office, and let the kids try on shoes he designed.
“This is completely foreign to them,” Garcia said.
“A lot of these kids learn about what career they want through television,” said All Stars vice president of marketing and sponsorships, Mae Tuck. “This is the most intimate, hands-on experience with a corporation they can get. They’re also learning about marketing, sales, lawyers. They’ve gone through every department.”
Paulina said that since studying with Raysse, she has learned to think first in simple ideas and that the later ideas will be great.
“It doesn’t always have to the best at first,” she said.
Greenberg said that The Skechers Foundation hopes to expand the program with All Stars and will also continue to seek out new partnerships with non-profit organizations to make a positive impact in children’s lives.
The company may have already had a hand in the course of a particular future designer.
“If Skechers gives me an opportunity for this, it could really be a new door to other opportunities in my life,” Paulina says, pausing to imagine the possibilities. “I mean, wouldn’t it be cool for my shoe that I designed to be out there for people to buy?” ER
