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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Shoemaker Louboutin taps into childhood memory for Paris retrospective

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Shoemaker Louboutin taps into childhood memory for Paris retrospective
Shoemaker Louboutin taps into childhood memory for Paris retrospective

Known for his red-soled shoes, the designer Christian Louboutin holds a retrospective exhibition in Paris museum

The Paris building that inspired shoemaker Christian Louboutin's obsession with stiletto heels is, nearly half a century later, home to a retrospective on his career.

The exhibition, entitled "Christian Louboutin l'Exhibition[niste]" showcases the inspirations behind the designer's work, and collaboration with artisans and contemporary artists who have re-interpreted his work.

Louboutin used to go to the Palais de la Porte Doree to look at exhibitions when he was a boy.

Now during his own retrospective at the museum he opened up about how his childhood inspired his work.

"My father was a craftsman," Louboutin told Reuters.

"he was a cabinetmaker.

And as a child, I saw the way he worked, the obsession with detail, the precision needed if you're an expert in a particular craft." He also share the story behind his signature shoes with lipstick-red painted soles.

While working on one prototype, he saw someone next to him painting her nails, borrowed the varnish and tried putting some of it on the sole.

"It was a revelation," he said.

"It became a trademark and I'm happy that I kept it." The exhibition opens on February 26.

(Production: Ania Poullain-Majchrzak)

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