Considering his shoes as sculptures after studying art, Roger Vivier made the roaring 20s shine and kept Mistinguett and Josephine Baker dancing. In a turn of events worthy of the most fortuitous of encounters, he was backed by Christian Dior to create shoes for his collections between 1953 and 1963, invented high heels, or at the very least gave them forms that were then unheard of, and made the shoes for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II on June 2, 1953. Roger Vivier could be considered a precious witness to the most solemn hours in the life of the Queen of England, since Queen Mary confided in her daughter Elizabeth shortly before her death: “Do not forget that, during the coronation, you’ll be standing for three hours and mustn’t stumble nor hesitate on your feet. The Queen falling would amount to the fall of the monarchy.”
But what gave the brand its renown remains the emblematic buckle that they fixed onto varnished shoes in Yves Saint Laurent’s Mondrian collection. The famous shoe then accessorized the film “Belle de Jour” in 1966, where Catherine Deneuve popularized even further what would become the brand’s trademark. Jackie Kennedy, Elizabeth Taylor, and Sophia Loren would all follow in the same footsteps of comfort and elegance. After an article in Vogue, exploding sales allowed the designer to enter a historical and artistic posterity by seeing his works admitted into the Musée de la Mode in 1987. Today, Bruno Frisoni leans towards rejuvenating the brand all while keeping with the same dynamic spirit tinged with a targeted feminine feel, as evidenced by the Miss Viv’ bag created especially for an event for Carla Bruni’s foundation. With its rigid and structured sides, the geometric lines united with dazzling colors from sanguine rouge to peony with a blue splash in between are now softened by a buckle with rounder traits, suggestive of the timeless line so near and dear to Roger Vivier.
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