Christian Louboutin – The Exhibition[ist]

by Abdon FLORES

In recent years, Christian Louboutin has become a key figure in the fashion world and an internationally renowned footwear designer. His name is immediately, and inevitably, associated to female shoes. We can state that the red sole is his signature and the wild creativity his spirit. Who wouldn’t wear a pair of Louboutins, if not for the sake of a unique, single, magical night?

From 26 February 2020, the Palais de la Porte Dorée presents a major exhibition devoted to the work and creativity of Christian Louboutin. Designed as an invitation to discover M. Louboutin’s rich universe, the exhibition explores every facet of his multi-referential work, in an institution that has played an important role in inspiring his vocation. From the beginning, Christian Louboutin infused his designs with a great wealth of motifs and colors inspired by his love of art and different cultures. Flamboyant, daring, open to the world, generous and at times caustic, the designer’s creativity is informed by a passion for travel and references from the worlds of pop culture, theater, dance, literature and cinema.

 

 

In revealing Christian Louboutin’s inspirations and creative processes, the exhibition showcases the designer’s vision through a selection of the most precious works from his personal collection and loans from public collections. A large selection of shoes is on display, some of which have never been exhibited before. These historic and artistic pieces are shown alongside a number of exclusive collaborations which pay tribute to Christian Louboutin’s admiration for craftsman’s know how. Some examples include stained glass panels created by the Maison du Vitrail, a Sevillian silver palanquin and a cabaret sculpted in Bhutan.

The exhibition also unveils collaborations with artists who are important to him: the director and photographer David Lynch, the New Zealand multimedia artist Lisa Reihana, the British designer duo Whitaker Malem, the Spanish choreographer Blanca Li, and the Pakistani artist Imran Qureshi, among others.

 

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Christian Louboutin was fascinated from an early age by the architectural beauty and ornamental richness of the Palais de la Porte Dorée. In fact, M. Louboutin was born in the 12th district of Paris, and this building was one of his earliest influences feeding his love of art and applied arts. He borrowed a whole repertoire of forms and motifs from the Palais for his first designs, including the Maquereau shoe – made of metallic leather and directly inspired by the iridescence of the fish in the Palais de la Porte Dorée’s tropical aquarium.

Ironically, it was also at the Palais, a masterpiece of Art deco, that Christian Louboutin, then a young adolescent, noticed a sign forbidding visitors to wear high heeled shoes. “I have always been fascinated by the architectural beauty and decorative richness of the Palais de la Porte Dorée,” declares M. Louboutin. “I immersed myself in all of these patterns –abstract and figurative– and they formed a subconscious repertoire of shapes, colors, and textures that never ceased to influence my imagination.” He resumes that “For me, this exhibition is an opportunity to pay tribute to the Palais, which gave rise to my vocation and that has continued to inspire me ever since.”

The exhibition will be open until July 26^th.