The Blue-footed Booby (LM x Ink Dwell)
The Blue-footed Booby (LM x Ink Dwell)
Our latest collaboration with Ink Dwell celebrates an icon of the Galápagos Islands famous for its spectacularly blue feet: the Blue-footed Booby. This shoe is inspired by one of Ink Dwell’s most beloved murals, the “Wall of Birds.” Of all 243 birds on the wall, we chose to highlight the Blue-footed Booby because it is the bird with our favorite footwear.
To make this shoe, Ink Dwell created a series of illustrations that capture this famed bird’s goofy yet much-loved mating dance, which we then transformed—through nearly 200,000 stitch points—into an embroidered, wearable masterpiece. The Blue-footed Booby captures a majestic hunter in its amusing routine, and invites us all to have a little more fun. Ready to step into your very own blue suede shoes?
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Details
Embroidered on organic & recycled cotton canvas.
Waxed cotton laces in two colors to mix up your look: black & taupe.
Vegan - the lining and trim are made from an eco-friendly microfiber technology that provides the breathability and feel of leather.
Supportive insole and a removable, cork-lined footbed. Rubber sole.
Made by hand in Portugal.
View lookbook here.
Extras!
Every pair comes with a print of Ink Dwell’s illustrations of the Blue-footed Booby’s mating dance, signed by the artist, Jane Kim.
Le Mondeur is a proud supporter of Galápagos Conservancy. 3% of every purchase is donated to support their conservation work with the Blue-footed Booby population. Read more below.
Fit Tips: Our shoes come in whole, European sizes. The sizing is unisex. We typically recommend ordering the size up if you wear a half size or have a wider width foot.
Behind the Design: The Blue-Footed Booby
We first had the thrill of partnering with Ink Dwell to create Monarch in Moda, a shoe inspired by their eponymous Monarch Migrating Mural in Ogden, Utah. Our latest collaboration is inspired by one of Ink Dwell's most beloved murals, the "Wall of Birds." Of all the 243 birds on the wall, we choose to highlight the Blue-footed Booby because it is the bird with our favorite footwear.
Artist Jane Kim of Ink Dwell working on the “Wall of Birds.”
“The booby provided an irresistible opportunity to celebrate the state of silliness. In the air and at sea they are magnificent shapeshifters, broad-winged bombers that start their aerial dives from one hundred feet high, then fold into a spear to plunge eighty feet deep after baitfish. Such grace escapes the birds on land, where it’s easy to see why the booby derives its name from the Spanish word for ‘foolish.’ …
The Blue-footed Booby’s choreography is not meant to make the birds work hard but to flaunt their success at hard work. Boobies produce a pastel-blue pigment in their feet with the help of carotenoids absorbed from their piscivorous diet. The brighter the feet, the better fed—and healthier—the booby. Their amorous dance is a means to show off those vibrant paddles, the color a tropical Caribbean seascape of 7-Eleven Slurpee. …
While many bird species use dance to display strength or agility, the booby’s jig is a slow and awkward two-step. I relished the opportunity to capture such a majestic hunter in its goofy routine.
The booby represents an important lesson. Sometimes, we humans can take ourselves too seriously. We forget to have fun. The booby reminds us that, every so often, it’s okay to look silly on the dance floor.” — The artist, Jane Kim, of Ink Dwell.
About Ink Dwell
Ink Dwell studio creates art that explores the wonders of the natural world. Merging classical techniques of science illustration with modern fine art, they make everyday places special and enhance iconic locations with wondrous and monumental imagery.
Jane Kim working on a Great Cormorant for the “Wall of Birds,” the mural that inspired this shoe.
Jane Kim is a visual artist, science illustrator, and the founder of Ink Dwell, a Bay Area studio that explores the wonders of the natural world. Her art career started when she was a little girl obsessively painting flowers and bears on the walls of her bedroom. She received more formal training at Rhode Island School of Design and then Cal State Monterey Bay, where she received a master’s certificate in science illustration. She has created large-scale public art across the country, including the Wall of Birds at The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and produced works for the National Aquarium, the de Young Museum, Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Weber State University, and more. She is the creator of the Migrating Mural campaign, a series of public installations that highlight wildlife along migration corridors it shares with people. She still enjoys painting flowers and bears, though nowadays she doesn’t get in trouble for painting on the walls.
Jane Kim at her studio in Half Moon Bay, California. Photo by Tess Feuilhade.
Galapagos Conservancy & The Blue-Footed Booby
For 36 years, Galápagos Conservancy has worked with organizations and individuals in Galápagos and across the world to support scientific research that informs policy, decision making, and conservation management. This work includes conservation of the iconic Blue-footed Booby.
Photo: Andres Jacobi.
Photo: Michele Owsley/Galápagos Conservancy
The Galápagos Islands are one of our planet's most precious natural wonders. But the Archipelago and its wildlife are confronting unprecedented challenges. From climate change and plastic pollution to illegal fishing and invasive species, the survival of this magical place is under imminent threat. That’s why Galápagos Conservancy is leading the charge to save these threatened species and fragile ecosystems while building a culture of conservation within the local community to promote the long-term success of our efforts.
The Blue-footed Booby is the most famous seabird species in the Islands. However, despite its popularity, threats to the continued survival of this charismatic bird are poorly understood.
Since 2012, Galápagos Conservancy has funded several projects to evaluate Blue-footed Booby population size and health, which have indicated a severe reduction in breeding success, likely due to lingering effects of the 1997 El Niño event that crashed the population of sardines – one of the Blue-footed Booby’s primary food sources – in the waters surrounding Galápagos. In 2022, after receiving reports of rebounding sardine populations, Galápagos Conservancy is working with scientists, led by Dr. Kate Huyvaert of Washington State University, to firmly establish population trends, and provide concrete data to clarify the muddled picture of the status of Blue-footed Boobies in Galápagos. This research will inform and shape conservation actions for this stunning species well into the future, so we can protect the Blue-footed Booby forever.
Their community of supporters is the largest source of private funding for conservation in Galápagos. Together, with the support of generous people like you, Galápagos Conservancy and our partners are investing in concrete solutions so that this ecological treasure can remain healthy and wild for generations to come. To learn more or to donate directly to Galápagos Conservancy, visit here.
Photo: Meera Mahadevan/Galápagos Conservancy