TINAS on the Road: Sheffield Cathedral
A footwear deconstruction workshop with This Is Not a Shoe and Wendy Ward

Friday 13 November 2026 | 3pm – 7pm
The Chapter House, Sheffield Cathedral, Church Street, Sheffield S1 1HA
£50

Description:

This Is Not a Shoe is visiting the UK, and we’re bringing our shoe deconstruction workshop to Sheffield for one session only.

This special workshop is a collaboration with Sheffield-based designer, author and researcher Wendy Ward. It grew out of a conversation between TINAS co-founder Alex Sherlock and Wendy on The Social Lives of Shoes podcast, where we discovered how closely our approaches connect. Both of us explore the relationships people have with the things they wear, and what those relationships can teach us about care, longevity and letting go. This workshop brings these methods together for the first time.

Bring a pair of shoes that means something to you: shoes that are no longer worn, but you can’t bear to throw away. Over four hours, you’ll carefully take them apart piece by piece, then arrange the components into a flat-lay artwork to take home. Along the way, you’ll learn how shoes are made, what they’re made from, the labour behind them, and the sustainability challenges tied to how we make, buy and discard footwear.

This time, we’ll go deeper. Drawing on Wendy’s practice, you’ll write a love letter to your shoes, reflecting on what they’ve meant to you and the life you’ve shared before you part ways. You’ll also make rubbings from the deconstructed pieces, capturing their textures, wear marks and traces of the journeys they’ve travelled, providing an opportunity to reflect on their meanings and associations.

The workshop provides a calm, reflective session, and you can take part however suits you. Work quietly, or chat and share stories around the table.

The setting:
The workshop takes place in the Chapter House of Sheffield Cathedral, where stained glass windows tell the story of Sheffield. It’s a beautiful setting for an afternoon of making, reflection and storytelling, and a meaningful return to the city for Alex, who completed her PhD at the University of Sheffield in 2016.

We provide: all tools and materials, plus a safety demonstration
Please bring: one significant pair of shoes you no longer wear and are willing to deconstruct (with a back-up pair if you have any doubts)
Facilitators: Dr Alexandra Sherlock (RMIT University / This Is Not a Shoe / Footwear Research Network) with Wendy Ward (Sheffield Hallam University)

Where your ticket goes
Tickets are priced to cover costs. Any profit will go towards registering the Footwear Research Network as a social enterprise, so we can keep bringing our work to more people in more places.

Book your place today – 15-participant capacity.

Contact the host of 'This is Not a Shoe' on the road at Sheffield Cathedral

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