Manolo Blahník’s shoes inspire fanatical devotion.

Diane Von Furstenberg has hundreds of pairs; Paloma Picasso has been a fan since she was fourteen; Bianca Jagger, Anna Piaggi and Kate Moss are fellow addicts. His career began in 1971 when he showed his sketches to Diana Vreeland, legendary editor of American Vogue. Admiring one particularly whimsical drawing of a shoe that crept up the ankle and became entwined with ivy and cherries she said, ‘You should do shoes.’ And so he did.

Here are over one hundred and twenty of the exuberant, colour-rich sketches that Blahník makes at the outset of the design process, executed with such verve and deftness that they have become as sought-after as the shoes themselves. Inimitable in style, beautifully reproduced in this book with special inks, they vividly convey Blahník’s unique vision.

The foreword by Anna Wintour, Editor in Chief of American Vogue, and contributions by André Leon Talley, Michael Roberts and Anna Piaggi provide valuable insights into the man behind the shoes. These are complemented throughout the book by the comments of a host of admirers including David Bailey, Suzy Menkes, Mario Testino and Sarah Jessica Parker.

For anyone who has ever coveted a pair of ‘Manolos’, or indeed has the slightest interest in fashion or draughtsmanship, this book is destined to become a classic.

Manolo Blahník began sketching at the age of seven. He studied at the University of Geneva before moving to Paris and then London, where he hoped to become a set designer. Manolo Blahník has been the recipient of many prestigious awards, including three special awards from the Council of Fashion Designers of America, and the British Council’s ‘Accessory Designer of the Year’ in 1990 and 1999.

Also of interest
Manolo's New Shoes
The Seductive Shoe: Four Centuries of Fashion Footwear
Blahník by Boman: A Photographic Conversation
Shoes: The Complete Sourcebook
Fashion Illustration by Fashion Designers