Christian Louboutin is a name that should not be said lightly. Like Lord Voldemort, he is a dark god with mysterious powers – and his followers? The shoe obsessives and fashion conscious, like myself. With a red flag of sex appeal and style, he has conquered the fashion world, and the documentary on Channel 4 shows that he has no plans of slowing down or stopping any time soon.
His first shoe was inspired by a photograph of Princess Diana, in which he thought that she seemed so sad looking down at her feet that he created a shoe that would make her say ‘hello!’ and brighten her up with the words ‘LOVE’ split across the two fronts of the black suede pointed loafers.
With the signature lacquer red soles costing up to £6,000, his killer heels have become pieces of art rather than simply an accessory. The designer’s more creative and extreme styles have included shoes that he didn’t want anyone to be able to walk in, and were simply for show and design – the heels are so outrageously high that the model’s feet were arched in such a way that she was more pointed than a ballet dancer on pointe.
Due to his designs often collaborating a great eroticism, which he is proud of, Louboutin is often accused of imposing a male fantasy on women. However, the designer’s response was that he was offended and said that it is “rude and crazy” to imply that this is responsible for women liking high heels.
Throughout the show, it was clear that the women who are obsessed with his shoes as accessories, collectors items, or pieces of art, like them because they are aesthetically pleasing and revitalize a creative and sexual part of us all, not because of a deeply misogynistic control.
His newly discovered exotic and Egyptian biological father is coincidently mirrored through the company’s expansion in the Middle East and India, due to its massive market of new multimillionaires. This market expansion and the fact that Louboutin does not need to do any advertising or publicity only confirmed that his shoes are solely made for the rich and famous, with its exclusivity and the designer’s presence at events as the main promotional outlets.
Sadly, Louboutin confirmed that he cannot agree to do a cheaper and more affordable line because the thought of making something with a lower quality offends him and he does not want to create something that he will not be proud of. Cue the sound of hearts breaking around the world…
For anyone with a shoe fetish, this show is definitely worth a watch. You learn so much about the man behind the designs that we drool over, where his inspiration comes from, and that he has over 100 pairs of shoes in his house, which I actually thought was quite conservative, considering his profession and passion. We even learn exclusive terms such as ‘Doing a Mariah Carey’ which is where you take away shoe material to show more flesh – one to add to the dictionary. Revisit Louboutin: The World’s Most Luxurious Shoes on Channel 4.
#Peace.Love.ChristianLouboutin
