Untitled

These pairs of custom-made shoes were
produced with material from fake designer
handbags bought on the streets of Venice in
early 2015. In the work, the artist subtly
questions the notion of authenticity, and
interrogates the transformative potential of
art-making. Untitled (2015) follows a thread
from Untitled (2013–ongoing), where
Panayiotou tranforms leather handbags
gifted to him by important women in his life
into custom-made shoes in his own size. The
work is part of an emotionally charged
series that explores the fine line between
biography and constructed imaginaries.
 In this body of work, Panayiotou has
created an intertextual narrative; a fake of
his work is constructed from a set of
materials that are themselves aspirational
fakes. The result is a mimetic work that
raises questions about the contradictions
inherent within the processes of production
and authorship. The shoes presented will
never be worn outside the fitting sessions
required for their production, as with the
original Untitled (2013–ongoing). The
symbolic value of the material is amplified
here through a ceremonial process of
transfiguration.