Dear All bloggers, here is my first university essay on the historical relevance of high heels, check it out! :
“A woman carries her clothes. But the shoe carries the woman.”-
Christian Louboutin.
Shoes to some women, including myself can be the most crucial
part of an outfit. Over many centuries, shoes and high heels in particular have
developed significantly and become a huge part of the fashion industry and
retail expansion. As a devoted fashion follower, I am always looking out for
the most recent trends and how areas of fashion every day are becoming more
revolutionized. The progress and even scientific development of shoes, and high
heels in particular has become so fascinating and so relevant to the needs of
consumers of todays society, that I feel as though it would be appropriate in
this essay to explore the development and differences between high heel designs
of the past and present.
I personally have a huge obsession with high
heels, and in particular Kurt Geiger’s range. There is a pair of shoes I bought
in the autumn of 2014, that are by far my favourites, not only to look at but
also the way they make me feel when wearing them; although they are very
impractical and impossible to walk in. They are silver metallic in colour, they
have a point at the front of them, and have a twist strap that begins at the
front of the shoe, and supports around the ankle. Despite being my favourite
shoe, they are six inches in height and create an arch shape in my foot that
can be very uncomfortable if worn for a long period of time, and defy the
anatomy of a foot.
Since
the summer of 2012 I have been working for Clarks Shoes, and it has been
incredibly interesting to see how certain shoe manufacturers including Clarks
take so much consideration into the shape, size and comfort of a shoe compared
to others who base their designs around trends only.
Clarks
not only emphasizes the importance of a well fitting shoe, but also highlights
the importance of comfort.
To
keep up the brands reputation, each staff member is thoroughly trained on how
to measure a foot properly and how to fit a shoe correctly. Clarks not only has
half size shoe measurements to get the most accurate size possible, but also
width fittings, so there are shoes suitable for almost every foot shape. The
training is more crucial when working in the children’s department as parents
trust us to make sure their children’s feet will grow healthy, and the right
shape, causing no pain including blisters or rubbing. Each child’s shoe is
fitted with growing room, allowing them to last a reasonable amount of time,
and certain shoes have technologies to improve practicality and comfort. The
adult’s department also takes great care in making sure we design and sell the
most practical and comfortable shoes necessary. The unstructured range in
particular keeps its reputation for comfort as it contains no metal in the
shoes, with increased padding; and also the cushion plus range that has a layer
in between the soles to cushion and reduce strain on the ball of the foot,
enhancing the ability to walk and use the shoe for longer.
Clarks
has been a well established brand since 1825, and have since been trusted to
create the most practical and sensible shoes for every day wear until present
day. It is clear to see the importance of practicality and comfort in footwear
has existed for a long period of time, and it is fascinating to compare this to
haute couture designers of the past and present who do not care about the
practicalities of a shoe or the anatomy of a foot.
Despite
having a relative amount of knowledge on shoes, and the features that make them
beneficial to our feet, I still get almost hypnotized into buying shoes by how
they look, and how they improve our esteem when wearing them. In November I
visited the Shoes: Pleasure and pain exhibition at the V&A museum, and the
diverse shoe designs, and designers were surreal. The exhibition taught me so
much about why women wear certain shoes, and what image they are trying to
portray by wearing them.
Shoes
have always been a symbol of status, seduction and authority, and even dating
back to 1st century Egypt, the international shoe story of
Cinderella has been teaching young girls the importance of shoes, and how It
can aid you to find true love.
Throughout
the years designers and cultures have used these themes a lot when designing
shoes, to connote the reputation of a brand and their social status. An example
of this would be the brand Louboutin, Christian Louboutin designs with the well
recognizable red sole symbolize the high social status that the brand holds.
The Shoes: Pleasure and pain exhibition stated that they show a message of
supremacy and privilege, due to their upmarket reputation, price and known for
how they are ‘seen and heard’.
Many
women, and also men see high heels as a power tool, In Valerie Steeles book,
Simon Doonan quotes ‘High heels connote a level of authority’ [1],
and David Bailey says ‘I like high heels, I know its chauvinistic, but it means
girls can’t run away from me’[2]
showing how not only men like the thought of high heels, most likely for a lot
of the same reasons as women. High heels promote femininity but also sex, as
shown in another statement by Valerie Steele in her book ‘In popular
imagination, it seems that “feminine” shoes must be sexy and uncomfortable’[3]-
this could derive from how female’s feet should come across as dainty which
could originate from the foot binding in China. In another Valerie Steele book
it says ‘Foot binding apparently arose at the Chinese imperial court during the
tenth century, when it was associated with dancers… In silhouette, it gave the
effect of a high heeled shoe’[4]
The Chinese culture believed that women’s feet should be very small and dainty
to promote their feminine qualities but also in the same book, Valerie suggests
‘The sexual symbolism of this seems obvious...erotic literature indicates that
the toe was used in sex play as a phallic substitute’[5].
This indicates that despite creating a feminine image, it also links in with
sexual influences, and shows that high heels may not only be used for glamour
purposes. Valerie Steele quotes ‘High heels implicitly convey the idea that
comfort is not the only consideration, that under certain circumstances glamour
happens to me more important’[6]
but not only glamour, also our self esteem. Veronica Webb says that ‘High heels
put your ass on a pedestal- where it belongs’ showing that us women should feel
more confident with their figures in heels. Christian Louboutin ‘Shoes
transform your body language and attitude, they lift you physically and
emotionally’ stating that shoes improve our self esteem; and it has been
psychologically proven that women feel slimmer, and better about themselves
when wearing them. An online article says ‘Since the heel is so thin, it
offers a direct contrast to your legs, giving you both height and a thinner
silhouette...makes the calves contract to make you look more lean.’ [7] Women also believe it
shapens the waist more and enhances breast size due to posture.
Rogor Vivier was a king of designing shoes that women would lust
over, with innovative heel shapes, that created such diverse looks and shapes
on the catwalk, and in his own words ‘To wear dreams on ones feet is to begin
to give a reality to ones dreams’. To me this suggests that the concept and
desire of heels has developed over many centuries, and through many cultures.
Designers of the present and future have begun to enhance and push boundaries
to produce elite shoe designs, for practicality but also for image and status,
and to promote the development of science and technology, to eventually create
designs that appear impossible and almost magical.
[7]
Jennings,
Danielle. "What Shoes Will Make Your Legs Look Skinner?" Motherhood.
Demand Media, -. Web. -.
