Over the years, wildlife art has been featured on a vast array of products, from prints and posters to lampshades and wall clocks, bed spreads and blankets, furniture and mirrors, glasses and dishware and even grandfather clocks. And now, thanks to renowned artist AD Maddox and entrepreneur Doug Guyer, it’s found on a stylish new product: Slip-on footwear.
Early in 2022, although they live and work some 2,000 miles from each other – Maddox in Montana and Guyer in Pennsylvania – they were both kicking around the idea of producing shoes that would feature the artist’s unique line of gamefish art.
“I had long admired AD’s colorful images of trout and other gamefish,” says Guyer. “She dominates an artistic niche that is unique not only in America, but worldwide.
“When I called AD to share my thoughts about a new line of footwear featuring her art, I was amazed when she responded: ‘Yes, I’ve been wondering how to do just that! So, how do we do proceed?’ “
Guyer and his staff at Wildlife Designs, LLC quickly created several samples of slip-on shoes made of top-grade materials. Meanwhile, Maddox came up with eye-catching elements from her fish art and where to place them on the footwear.
Four designs have now been finalized and each will be produced in a limited edition of 2,850 at a shop in Spain that specializes in custom footwear. The four models include:
The Brook XXI
Wear the skin of a Mountain Brook Trout as seen & painted by AD, while you hang in the cabin, or at your favorite watering hole, after a day on the water.
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The Rainbow
These Slip-on shoes reflect AD’s unique way of painting the skin of a Rainbow Trout, showing it’s amazing and natural beauty.
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Brooks World
AD’s masterpiece of a native Brookie gliding through his domain is reflected in this beautiful Slip-On shoe.
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The Snack
Wear one of AD Maddox’s most popular works of art, called “Snack”, featuring a Rainbow rising for a light snack.
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Wildlife Designs is gearing up to ship AD Maddox slip-ons worldwide. “From our reservation site, we transfer orders to Spain where each pair is custom-made, then sent to us via air,” Guyer notes. “We then ship the shoes directly to our customer. The entire process takes only ninety days. Oh, and a portion of each sale purchase will go to Trout Unlimited.”
Maddox and Guyer are already close to finalizing designs on four additional models of slip-ons, each hand-stitched with a high-quality cotton-polyester upper, a breathable fabric insole and a sole of rugged natural rubber.
“I’m so pleased that my shoe line has been launched,” exclaims Maddox. “These loafers are super fun and will spice up any outfit. Now my fish art can be enjoyed all around town!”
“I was the CEO of Brandshare, a Marketing/Advertising company, which my family built into the world’s largest E-Commerce Media Network,” says Guyer. “After thirty-eight years in business, we decided to sell it, which has since enabled me to pursue what I call ‘passion plays,’ like our new line of AD Maddox shoes.
“After a full day on the water, you can slip on these shoes and sit back and relax. Boaters and anglers can get really comfortable in these durable yet very lightweight shoes.”
A pair of AD Maddox slip-ons sells for $189. Limit of three sets per customer. To order, visit: ADMaddoxShoes.com.