![SHOES OFF
Removing one’s shoes is a deeply rooted tradition across many Asian and Middle Eastern cultures. Every visitor to a Japanese home, for example, will leave their shoes inside a genkan—a kind of porch with a raised border intended to prevent any negative ki (the equivalent of chi, or energy) from entering. The genkan also acts as a psychological gateway between the outside and inside worlds: As well as a mark of respect for the host, removing one’s shoes is symbolic of leaving one’s worries—as well as germs—at the door.
( Hua wears a cardigan and shirt by PRADA, shorts by DSQUARED2 and boots by BOTTEGA VENETA. Jiao wears an outfit by PRADA. Clogs by JW ANDERSON X WELLIPETS. Ballerina slippers by BALENCIAGA. )](https://www.kinfolk.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/A_World_of_Difference_02-350x466.jpg)
Arts & Culture
![SHOES OFF
Removing one’s shoes is a deeply rooted tradition across many Asian and Middle Eastern cultures. Every visitor to a Japanese home, for example, will leave their shoes inside a genkan—a kind of porch with a raised border intended to prevent any negative ki (the equivalent of chi, or energy) from entering. The genkan also acts as a psychological gateway between the outside and inside worlds: As well as a mark of respect for the host, removing one’s shoes is symbolic of leaving one’s worries—as well as germs—at the door.
( Hua wears a cardigan and shirt by PRADA, shorts by DSQUARED2 and boots by BOTTEGA VENETA. Jiao wears an outfit by PRADA. Clogs by JW ANDERSON X WELLIPETS. Ballerina slippers by BALENCIAGA. )](https://www.kinfolk.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/A_World_of_Difference_02-350x466.jpg)
![kinfolk_vol15_makers_ft](https://www.kinfolk.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Kinfolk_Vol15_Makers_FT-350x350.jpg)
Mass Destruction
“Artists are often left baffled by the fact that they have millions of monthly streams, yet only a couple of thousand followers on social media.”
![StudioVisit_Heidi_Gustafson_01](https://www.kinfolk.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/StudioVisit_Heidi_Gustafson_01-350x222.jpg)
Studio Visit: Heidi Gustafson
A cabin in the Cascade Mountains houses a hermetic artist—and her extraordinary world of natural pigments.
![Between_the_Ears_crop](https://www.kinfolk.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Between_the_Ears_crop-350x445.jpg)
Between the Ears
“Our increased inability to listen to one another is a major contributor to the current global loneliness epidemic.”
![Location: Elite Edge Skating Club / Boston Sports Institute](https://www.kinfolk.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Mirai_Nagasu_02-350x438.jpg)
Figure Skating with Mirai Nagasu
The Olympic athlete has known glory, pain and transcendence on the ice.