20 Established 1961 Lifestyle Fashion Tuesday, February 25, 2020 Super-high heels free women, says shoe king Louboutin

uper-high heels can free women, says While Louboutin also makes trainers and Pop stars from to and Slegendary French shoe designer flat shoes, he admitted that when it comes to were soon competing with half Christian Louboutin, who insists that the spike-heeled classics that made his name: of Hollywood for fittings. But even as some wearing his towering six-inch stilettos is a “I don’t think about comfort when I design.” luxury brands like Dior, led by feminist design- “form of liberty”. While some feminists see “No shoe with a 12cm (5 inch) heel is comfort- er Maria Grazia Chiuri, have taken an axe to vertiginous heels as sexual enslavement, able... but people do not come to me looking towering heels, Louboutin insisted they still Louboutin believes the opposite-even if it for a pair of slippers,” said Louboutin, who had their place. “People project themselves means women have to walk slowly and care- helped bring high heels back into fashion in and their stories into my shoes,” he said, fully in his iconic red-soled creations. “Women the 1990s and 2000s. pointing to a particularly high pair of intricate do not want to give up wearing high heels,” They are not meant to be worn all the time, lace called Corset d’Amour, embroi- the designer told AFP before “The but super high heels allow women to express dered with scenes of love-making. Exhibitionist”, a retrospective of his 30-year themselves and break free of crushing norms, Louboutin revealed his life-long fascination career, opens in a museum Wednesday. he said. “To be a woman is also about enjoying with heels was sparked when he was 10 years one’s freedom to be feminine if you want. Why old and saw a sign banning the shoes at the renounce (high heels) when you can have them Palais de la Porte Doree-the museum now and flats,” he said. holding his retrospective. “I started to draw them because of that sign,” he said, which was Not meant to be comfy put up to save the museum’s parquet floors. French shoe designer Christian Louboutin poses during a photo session at the Palais de la “I don’t want people to look at my shoes Forbidden pleasures Porte Doree in Paris a few days before the opening of his exhibition ‘L’Exhibition-iste (The and say: ‘They look really comfortable!’ The Exhibition-ist). — AFP photos important thing is that people say: ‘Wow, “I think the fact that high heels were for- they’re beautiful!’” Even if they can only totter bidden played on the unconscious... there was shoes disappear into the wearer’s leg in a Louboutin rejoices in the fact that his shoes around in their Louboutins, that is no bad also the mystery and the fetishistic side... the series which he calls Les Nudes-in a variety of have now become so iconic that his name has thing, he told AFP. If the shoes “stop you run- simple drawing of a high-heeled shoe is often skin colors-as well as designs which lengthen become a shorthand for luxury and sexiness, ning”, that is something “positive”, he added. associated with sexuality,” he added. the leg. Other highlights of the often cheeky popping up in rap songs, films and books. “Pop Having learnt his art under Roger Vivier, the Louboutin also credited the sign with plunging show, which runs until July 28, include a holo- culture is neither controlled or controllable, so man who claimed to have invented the stiletto, him into “the universe of curves” which was to gram of a shoe that turns into the burlesque I am very happy about that,” he added. — AFP Louboutin became a household name in the shape his art. And he insisted that is art was star Dita Von Teese as well a series of French shoe designer Christian Louboutin poses 1990s after Princess Caroline of fell not just about making heels higher and higher. Louboutin-sporting nudes shot by the with one of his creations during a photo session. for one of his first solo creations. He has also been working on making his American film director .

This picture taken in on Sunday shows Indonesian designers Irna Mutiara (front row left), Itang Yunasz (second left), Hannie Hananto (second right) and Ivan Gunawan (first right) during the Muslim Fashion Festival in Jakarta.

Models present creations by designer Ivan Gunawan. Indonesian models presenting creations by designer Itang Yunasz during the Muslim Fashion Festival.

Indonesian models presenting creations by designers Oewi Wahyono, Adi Barlan and Kursien Karzai.— AFP photos