Shoes for Show: The Sculptural Art of High Heels

A couple of weeks ago I attended the “Shoes for Show” exhibition in London. It only ran in Brick Lane for a few days and being the shoe-a-holic that I am, I jumped at the chance.  

It all sounded good on paper so a couple of weekends back, I travelled into Central London to go and perve on the pretty shoes. Except the pretty shoes were nowhere to be found. My Google Maps led me to the wrong location – a charming, secluded area where I had visions of being knifed so got back onto the main road ASAP. I finally found the right number but when I got there, the Polish security guy sighed a loud sigh (I guess he had this a lot) and redirected me to another part of Brick Lane. Which I couldn’t find.

I was confused. I was lost. I was smelling amazing Brick Lane food and was damn hungry. I very nearly gave up. But thank goodness I didn't!

Finally found it. It was like a little abandoned warehouse, very simple and minimalist. One thing I’d worried about is that it’d be uber strict with lots of security personnel and photography prohibited. Not the case at all. There was one male “guard” who stayed out of the way and didn’t seem too bothered about anything. And people left, right and centre were snapping away. So I had no qualms about getting my camera out.

Manolo Blahniks. Oh my.

The charm wrapped around the heel, the lattice 

detail and the colour all make me melt a little inside.

These Vivienne Westwoods are not my cup o’ tea but 

they do remind me all of the Creepers all over 

the blogsphere at the moment.

Nikes! Can you imagine Nike Town selling these? I can’t.

Perhaps the weirdest shoes I’ve ever laid my eyes on. 

Not one, but two elevated heels so in theory, quite a 

sturdy pair of shoes. But then check out the weird shape 

of the heels…  And bath shoes? Really? I can’t imagine 

anyone wearing these by the poolside. 

Not even Lady GaGa. 

And that’s saying something.

No explanation needed here! 

Have already shared my thoughts of the Armadillo.

Don’t know about anyone else, but in these I see Litas. 

But really funky, velvety, glitzy / sparkly ones.

These are art. ‘Nuff said.

Simple, classic and yet, no less worthy of interest.

And these? I was lost for words then. And I still am now.

An artsy revamp of the gladiator sandal

A print like this would be amazing on a dress. 

And my favourites:

Alice in Wonderland shoes!

The delicate tea cup charms, 

the key, the fob watch, the 

foliage… all a bit OTT but at 

the same time fabulous 

for this very reason.

Get a load of these! Stunningly beautiful with 

the embellishment detail but just not practical. 

But even those who don't "get" shoes would 

have to admit that these are pure art. If 

Louboutin sell these as flats, I would 

snap these up in a heartbeat,

 no questions asked.

I actually liked these! A good mix of “hard” meets 

“soft” with the glitzy champagne-like colour 

combined with the spiky / studded exterior. 

These would get you noticed!

And now over to you! Do any of these fill you with horror? And which of these are love at first sight?

And for the latter, to wear or to have displayed in your home as expensive-but-totally-worth-it art?