2009 Graduate, Bachelor of Science in Industrial Design, The Art Institute of Portland
When Matthew Hurayt explains what it means to create tomorrow, he describes a learning process: "look back at the past, extract its successes, eliminate its failures, and strive to improve upon it." As a footwear designer 1 for Columbia Sportswear Company, Matthew is creating tomorrow's footwear concepts and seeing them through the product creation process—including research, design, and material selection. "What I enjoy the most about my career is that I get paid to do something that I truly enjoy. I also enjoy the variety of different projects that I get to work on," he states.
Matthew's creative inspirations range from nature and architecture to other examples of product design and footwear. "My heroes are successful footwear designers that have made a major impact on the footwear industry such as Tinker Hatfield, Michael DiTullo, and Eric Avarr of Nike." Matthew believes that earning a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Design degree from The Art Institute of Portland helped him to gain the technical skills needed to break into the footwear design industry. "I learned a multitude of valuable technical skills and artistic techniques while in school. These have helped me greatly in my career as a footwear designer," he asserts.
Looking to the future of footwear design, Matthew believes that the next big trends will revolve around performance and sustainability. He adds that an emphasis on lightweight, minimal performance combined with environmentally friendly materials and production processes, will drive these trends.