What's the Deal with Feet Anyway?

Thank you to TheAlpacaQueen for discovering this gem and opening a Twitter thread about it.

When I first saw this twitter thread I thought that there was no way it could be true. Surely someone put it up as a temporary gag for laughs - a publicity stunt. Sure enough, it was confirmed that this is a legitimate statue placed on the Dutch Secret Service HQ overlooking on-goers. Official explanation can be found here: https://www.aivd.nl/actueel/nieuws/2022/04/07/kunstwerk-op-aivd-gebouw

At first I thought it was hilariously ironic that non-furries commissioned what could otherwise be considered a furry artwork to be placed on top of a government building, but one thing was very certain - I couldn't get my mind off this knight. There was something about it I found so....curious (and I don't just mean the giant pair of lion footpaws he has). I mean everything from the design, the pose, the placement, everything is intentional and I really wanted to figure why the feet, so large, purposefully posed, were so detailed.

I mean look at them! They're pretty much KZ3's size , padded soles, the toepaws splayed and wiggling rather than in a resting position (almost teasingly). The Knight sits looking down as if he knows you're looking up at him and his big footpaws. As others have pointed out in the thread, it's almost... fetish content.

I shared it amongst my circle and each of them loved it in their own way (some were amazed, some laughed)

So it got me thinking deeper into the work: What exactly about this piece resonates? To be fair, this is the kind of work one sees from a footpaw fetish artist on FA, just brought into a real 3D space and by a government entity no less. But surely they didn't mean this to be a fetish work (much less a furry fetish work), so what was their goal here with this artwork? Dominance? Playful Mascot representation of power and sophistication? Innocent cool and comedic prideful aesthetic? The incorporation of the huge lion footpaws were very intentional, but even to the non-foot fetishists out there, what was the representation of the feet supposed to mean if not fetish related?

(I mean just look at those detailed tops.)

So it got me going down a rabbit hole of thoughts, studies, and experimentation. I remade this knight in WWE2k22, using the pair of big werewolf footpaws the game has in substitute for the lion paws. I changed the character's moveset to be all feet-based; stomps, foot chokes, smothering, kicks, steps, etc., I wanted to see if my theory was correct (Are feet representative of power?)

I played many matches, driving those big stompers into wrestlers faces. Standing on their bodies in victory, posing.

So it got me thinking about foot-fetishes in general (speaking for the male foot fetishists) and for such a very common fetish, it's strange how it's considered taboo considering how often feet are used for storytelling and non-kink related material.

Feet Used As Dominance

Think about it. When you think of Godzilla (NOT shin Godzilla), you think of his roar, his theme, his atomic ray, and him stomping around the city.

(Do you realize how many footshots there were of Godzilla in the 98' film? )

Even today, characters or powerful beings with lots of power or size are introduced by their feet first.

When they're stomping down on their enemies, proclaimingvictory over a foe, or show threats, or executions by a brute , how about another?
Or even introduce important characters in a story

Okay fair enough, It's obvious feet can be used to portray dominance, which can lead to aspects for partners such as humiliation, submission, etc.,

Feet Used Playfully

There's also the aspects of feet being used playfully, such as with tickling.

There's more to tickling than simple stimulation or playfulness, it's a type of stimulation that causes the one affected to often lose control of how their body reacts; being forced into a fit of laughter that can be so severe that it leaves one teary-eyed, drooling, exhausted as their body tries to thrash to escape. There's a reason tickling, despite not causing much physical harm, is considered a form of torture - it can lead to a complete loss of body control for the "victim".

When dealing with feet as playful, you're dealing with a DOM/SUB concept - someone forcing another to do or feel something against their will. There are those that love to be the torturer, relishing the form of punishment they inflict on their victim, and there are those who love to be helpless - who love to suffer at the hands of their tormentor.

There's also the the playful aspect of the 'threat' of dominance, as depicted with the foreboding statue:

(Toes splayed, almost wiggiling, as if he's cartoonishly displaying the power of the Dutch lion he represents; as if he's about to stomp down even.)

Feet used for Intimacy or Vulnerability

For my Quentin Tarantino fans, remember that scene in the classic film "Pulp Fiction" (1994) where the character's talk about one of the gang member's getting killed for giving the boss's girlfriend a foot rub? And Samuel L. Jackson's character had to explain that the act that warranted death was much more than just a footrub.

I remember reading a blog almost ten years ago about why people are into feet and the writer brought up a great point (at least with Western society), how often are we able to actually see another person's feet, let alone their soles, without being at a beach, pool, dojo, or locker room? Sure, sandals and flip-flops are common apparel typically worn to accommodate the proper weather conditions or ease of access, but, unless you're in a very specific setting or with close-family/friends, it's rare that you'll find others barefoot.

So when someone let's you touch their feet there's a sort of trust established - that another person is allowing themselves to be vulnerable around you. It's often why I enjoy reading "My first time" foot fetish erotica, that breaking of social normality into the realm of intimate and taboo is serious turn-on.

In mainstream media, you'll more often find this in scenes with women, depicting their legs and shoes rubbing against a male's.

Assuming one isn't paying a masseuse (in which case, that would be a job, and I'm pretty sure that person would not be doing that for free), someone else rubbing your feet shows that you're comfortable enough for them to touch you and they're comfortable enough with you to touch you. That kind of physical reassurance is in the same realm of romantic and romantic gesture.

Feet used for Humiliation

This pretty much ties in all three concepts above. Interacting with feet can be pleasing for both the dominator and the dominated (if we knew the intricacies and nuances of every sexual kink, the world would be a better place).

Here I'm talking solely to those who dabble in the Submissive spectrum; being the subject to someone else's whim, having a lack of control/power, even loss of body control, can be a big turn-on, especially when its done by a dominator you have intimacy with. What better way to be intimate than to give yourselves to them (willing or unwilling), the range of Dominance can vary (some like caring, playful dominators, some like to be treated as less than trash) everyone has their own preference on how much they want to be dominated.

If feet are such a common fetish, why is it socially taboo?

In the broad range of society you'll have those who are vehemently anti-feet and want nothing to do with them, all the way to those who base their entire lives around them (like yours truly) - yet it's taboo to openly talk about despite being a very common fetish. One could state it's almost as if the mere mention of a confession to the kink labels one as a pervert, crazed, shameful, disgusting, etc., and can serve to damage one's reputation amongst social circles.

Sadly, I don't have a clear and concrete answer to this question but found this article from FitMyFoot.com that goes into far more detail: Why Do People Hate Feet?

It's true that culture plays a large impact in perception of sex, intimacy, relationships, etc., there's no denying that it can be significantly positive or negative, and it can be extremely varied when you factor in the differences between western, eastern, middleast, etc.,

In Conclusion

This statue, named "De Wachter'" really got me thinking about just how much feet play a role in storytelling, characters, and, subsequently, my American society, and just how many aspects and nuances go into the blanket term of having a foot fetish. While I would love for more statues like this to pop up around the world, odds are it's definitely a one and done ordeal and probably will never happen again without some furry foot fetishist being in the room to approve (here's to hoping).

Still, it's such a curious case that a collective foreign government entity would view this simply as art and nothing more; a symbol of pride, power, and playfulness for the Dutch Secret Service. Maybe in some multi-verse there's a version of myself who innocently see's it that way, but this universe's me is a proud gay furry with a massive footpaw fetish - so this statue is naturally a 10/10 ha.

Hope you all enjoyed! Join the Male TF/Footpaw loving community over at The Bootbros Discord !