Almost every girl who has a love for shoes shares a love for Christian Louboutin; his famously creative shoes are desired by women across the world. This summer, The Design Museum in London presented an exhibition of the French shoe designer, celebrating a career which has pushed the boundaries of high fashion shoe design, and I was fortunate enough to attend.
I was so excited about this event and, as expected, there was quite a queue to enter. But this was a queue I was more than happy to wait in. After a short while we were at the bottom of the stairs leading to the exhibition itself. I actually felt the excitement of being a child entering the pick and mix section of my local sweet shop - my senses were heightened and fully alert for what I was about to experience. The circular candy style rings suspended from the ceiling of the stairwell, each containing a shoe within the circle, stimulated these feelings further.
As I entered the exhibition, there were shoe molds hung on the wall and general information about Christian himself, followed by a shadow effect display based on his shoe designs. This small display, I knew, was a teaser for what I was about to witness just around the corner.
I turned the corner and entered the main, dimly lit exhibition room, which housed a huge display of shoes. But this wasn't just any display. After all, this was an exhibition celebrating the works of one of the world's most artistic designers. My eyes were immediately transfixed by a beautiful, fully lit carousel. But instead of the usual horses on the carousel there, carefully placed on red hanging cushions, was a collection of Louboutin shoes. I loved simply taking the time to walk around the carousel, savoring each and every design.
The individually lit displays continued around the room, one doubling as a seating area, where people could sit and take a minute or so to appreciate the high levels of detail that go into every design. In front of the seated display was a hypnotizing spinning hologram of a sparkling heel. I was captivated, staring at the hologram for some time.
After a short while, I moved on to one of the smaller dedicated rooms, the first of which had a circus theme. The room contained shoes, the famous pill handbag, tools and hand drawings of the designs themselves. This room provided me with a life-like look into the creativity Louboutin applies to his shoe designs. I could have stayed in this room for hours absorbing the ideas, the creativity and the brief glimpse into the mind of a world-leading designer, but out of respect for the other visitors I did move on... eventually.
The next room was the fetish room. As we entered, I noted a sign advising that the contents may cause offence and that we could bypass it if we wished. I had already experienced the beauty, innocence and glamour that Louboutin offered his wearers; I wasn't about to miss the other, perhaps darker side of this amazing mind. The designs were truly fascinating, most of which left me wondering how the wearer would actually be able to walk. The heels were exceptionally high and, in some cases, the wearer would have a ballet-like stance. Other designs included the use of metal spikes, some of which I'm sure were for the benefit of someone other than the wearer, if you get my meaning. The shoes themselves were housed in glass cases, the kind you may find in a laboratory. This worked well as it gave the impression that only the willing and curious should release these shoes from their containment.
I continued through a small theatre area showing a short film about the designer himself, into a room where, taking centre stage, was a huge open Faberge egg housing a ballet dancer wearing black patent shoes. This room told the life story of Christain Louboutin including his early work for Chanel, YSL and his love of gardening. I spent a long time in this room and read every single piece of information in an effort to understand more about the man behind that iconic red sole. Leaving this room, I returned back into the main exhibition area, passing through a huge grass arch containing more shoes, clearly highlighting Christian's joint love of gardening and shoe design.
I spent more time walking around the main exhibition area admiring each and every shoe. As I was leaving, I noticed a design featuring the front grille and flying lady of Rolls Royce. I guess Christain Louboutin shoes are the Rolls Royce of the shoe world, what a perfect exit to an incredible exhibition.
To my surprise, although this may have been the exit to the Christain Louboutin exhibition, it was also the entrance to another that included a number of leading designers. More to come in my next blog post.
Zoe x
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