The V&A always hold such a great range of interesting exhibitions aimed at young creatives. When I saw the title for the current exhibition, Shoes, Pleasure and Pain, I was excited to see the selection of shoes as shoes are definitely my weakness. I thought the exhibition would display hundreds of shoes ranging from different eras. The exhibition did look at footwear from different eras but also footwear from all around the world, ranging from intricate details to elaborate contemporary shoes. Lots of the shoes came with background cultural information and part of the exhibition focused on the development of specific types of shoes.
There were 5 main sections; transformation, status, seduction, creation and obsession. The section that caught my attention most was seduction as it was interesting to see how different cultures interpreted a "seductive shoe" and foot size. For example, in China, to have small feet has always been seen as seductive and attractive. Foot binding is a process that began in the 10th century where women would practise binding their feet so they would eventually stop growing because they thought it would make them more beautiful and appealing to men. Young girls would wrap their feet tightly in bandages so their feet would stop developing and therefore naturally stop growing. Many shoes in the exhibition were tiny and didn't look like they would fit any adults foot, they looked like shoes for dolls. Personally, I think the size of the shoes are ridiculous and are not even the slightest bit attractive or beautiful. If I am completely honest, I didn't find many of the shoes that beautiful, they were completely different to the shoes sold in shops now and didn't appeal to my personal taste, but that just shows how shoes/trends vary with the era, culture and person. After the exhibition it made me think of all my shoes and which ones I would consider as my favourite. However, I struggled with this because I found a reason for each of my shoes... The type of shoe you wear is very important as they can make you feel completely different. For example, trainers, make you feel comfortable and chilled, whereas in heels, normally your posture changes and you carry yourself in a different way.
What are your favourite shoes and why?
Photo Credit - Chloe Ferdinand
