JI-SAN LEE ’ 11
Los Angeles | Muir College , Structural Engineering
01 . WHAT DO YOU DO ? I ’ m the senior designer for CLAE Footwear , which means I wear multiple hats throughout the shoe design process . It mostly involves developing our lines , figuring out the color palettes , working with other designers on mood boards , and coming up with the story , the overall theme for the season — be it a material story , or color story , or other factors . Right now , for instance , a very hot topic is sustainability . So we ’ ve been exploring a lot in terms of materials like alternative leathers , like cactus leathers , or other recycled materials like plastic bottles .
02 . WHY DO YOU DO IT ? It ’ s funny ; I never thought that I would end up in footwear , but I got into it through skating and sports — I was obsessed with soccer cleats , for instance , once I learned how much thought and design go into them . I think it all comes down to being a creative person . Over time , I ’ ve come to see designing shoes as one sort of outlet for the way I see the world . I can put my stamp on it , so that ’ s why I do it .
03 . WHAT HAVE YOU DONE ? I ’ ve had all kinds of roles in my career , from being an intern doing anything , then sales , and now design , which I love . Outside of footwear , I ’ m an apprentice in building motorcycles , and I do leatherwork — handmade wallets and wallet clips for my leather goods brand , Klip . It ’ s a common theme in design — it really doesn ’ t matter if it ’ s part of your job or just your outside interests , the creativity is always the same ; it ’ s just something you live .
04 . WHAT DID YOU LEARN HERE ? I ’ m proud of my degree because engineering kicked my butt , and getting that critical thinking part down made anything else seem fun and easy . I always had a lot of interests outside my major , and I was able to indulge them at UC San Diego . My mom gave me a sewing machine in my senior year , for example — that ’ s how I started making wallets for friends . And with electives , I ’ d always go for the visual or creative ones . They taught me how to take logic and problem-solving and incorporate it into something creative — basically merging engineering and art .
IF THE SHOE FITS ... Ji-San Lee ’ 11 holds the Runyon , a retro running shoe he designed using vegan and recycled materials . The mural behind him was painted by fellow Triton , Kent Yoshimura ’ 10 , at the CLAE offices in L . A . Lee has been doing most of his designing at home during the pandemic .
05 . WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED SINCE ? How stubborn and persistent you have to be to become a designer ! But really , I learned it ’ s all just a journey . I didn ’ t know at all where I would end up , but pursuing and developing my interests , and really listening to them , that gave me an open mind as to what new things I can learn . Since then , I ’ ve always asked , “ What else can I learn ?” That mindset has really pushed me to grow , not just in my career but in all other areas of life too .
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