… was an exhibition of footwear from the vast Stuart Weitzman Collection of Historic Shoes, on show at the New-York Historical Society between April-October 2018. Over a 100 pairs of these (mostly) wearable artworks were on display and I was in shoe heaven, barely able to restrain myself from trying them on – and walking away.
Scroll down and tell me you wouldn’t…
Sharon Von Senden, Jewels at Work – Swarovski crystals, stained glass, vintage stonesRobert Steele, Corrugated Curves, CardboardUnidentified maker, open-toe mules, ca. 1950s – Leather, plexiglas, rhinestone, elastic Spring-o-lator. These shoes belonged to Ginger RogersUnidentified maker, Mary Jane shoes, ca. 1926 – Silk and metallic patterned fabric, embossed metal buttons
”Mary Jane” was originally a character in a popular newspaper strip, Buster Brown. In 1904, the Brown Shoe Company licenced her image to market children’s shoes. Eventually, any shoe with a chunky low heel and a strap across the instep became know as a ”Mary Jane”.
Terry de Havilland, Peep-toe platform shoes, ca. 1972 – Suede, leatherDavid Evins, Column-heel pumps, ca. 1970 – PlasticUnidentified maker, Pumps, late 1920s – Silk, leatherUnidentified maker, Laced pumps, 1910 – Silk brocade, lacesPeal & Co., Buttoned boots, ca. 1920 (left) & Lace-up boots by an unidentified maker, ca. 1910-20 (right)Unidentified maker from China, Ankle-strap sandals, ca. 1930s – Silk, kid leather, embroideryDelman Shoes, Peep-toe evening shoes, ca. 1935 – Leather and mesh netFenton Footwear, T-strap pumps, ca. 1937 – Velveteen, leatherUnidentified maker, Buttoned boots, 1870sUnidentified maker, Lace-up boots, ca. 1900 – Silk and silk brocadeFenton Last, Open-toe slingback sandals, late 1970s – Leather, silkKnight Shoe Ltd., Lace-up boots, 1910-15 – Leather, canvas, lacesC. P. Ford & Co., High-top shoes, 1905-10 from Rochester, New York – Leather, buttonsKrohn-Fechheimer & Co., Red Cross Noiseless shoes, ca. 1918, LeatherEnzo of Roma, Thong sandals, 1960s – Leather, syntheticThe Chelsea Cobbler, Peep-toe platform shoes, ca. 1972 – SuedeFrank Brothers, T-strap shoes, ca. 1930 – Silk satin, kid leather, mother-of-pearl buttonUnidentified maker, T-strap evening sandals, ca. 1940s – Leather, silk, rhinestonesHerbert Levine Inc., Kabuki platform shoes, 1964 – Suede, woodRobert Tabor, Cabfab – Acrylic, vinyl, rhinestonesThe Red CarpetUnidentified maker, Stilted bath clogs (qabâqib), 19th century. Ottoman, possibly Syrian – Wood, inlaid mother-of-pearl
Women throughout the Islamic Middle East wore stilted wooden bath clogs such as these for over four centuries. An adaptation of ancient Roman shoes called sculponea, qabâqib were similarly associated with bathing and bath houses. Nineteenth-century European orientalists considered these highly desirable collectibles, symbolizing an imagined ”Eastern” exoticism and eroticism.
Freed of London, Toe shoes, 1994-95 – Silk, canvas, leather
The ballerina Heather Watts wore this pair of pointe shoes on January 15, 1995 for her farewell performance as a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet, which she joined in 1970. Watts afterwards told the New York Times, ”I need to live in new shoes.”
Gregg Barnes, designer. T.O. Dey, maker. ”Kinky boots” ca. 2013, from New York City. Paten metallic leathers, rubber, fabric, metal
”The sex is in the heel / Fierce as you can make it / The sex is the appeal”, sings Lola, the drag queen at the heart of the musical Kinky Boots. The hit Broadway show is based on the true story of a struggling shoe factory that survived by producing high-heeled fetish footwear in men’s sizes.
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The Humble Fabulist 
Some of these shoes are really beautiful pieces of art! 😎
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Aren’t they great! I really had to restrain myself
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It’s been said footwear over the ages is a historical view into the social times, this is a great representation.
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True! And to think that heels used to be worn by men! Goes to show how times are changing over the centuries 🙂
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