The Art Fair Shoe
Forget the cool tote bag, quirky pair of glasses or designer hat. The shoe is today’s ultimate art fair accessory.
“There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home,” Dorothy incanted as she clicked her heels three times and willed those magical ruby slippers to return her from Oz.
It’s a moment that is etched in cinematic history, and those ruby slippers in folklore. Like Cinderella, whose glass slipper provided the key to her royal transformation, the connection between footwear and magic runs deep.
In more recent decades, the iconic television series Sex and the City offered something of a fresh interpretation through Carrie Bradshaw’s obsession with shoes and, in particular, the Manolo Blahnik. Her belief that these particular shoes not only provided status but also satisfaction and self-esteem, saw the shoe rise to new heights and consolidated the perception that shoes are transformative.
This relationship between footwear and identity has helped afford the shoe cult status. There is a belief that the right shoe can provide their wearer with the magical ability to transform themself, help them reach their goals, and provide a window into their identity. And let’s face it: we’d all struggle to name a woman who doesn’t check out a man’s shoes on the first date!
Our want to articulate our identity through our attire – and especially our footwear – is no more apparent than amidst the bustling halls of an art fair. But the fair environment provides the added complication of exercise and endurance. The distances racked up wandering the aisles soon ... Subscribe to read this article in full
