Roger Vivier | |
|---|---|
| Born | Roger Vivier (1907-11-13)13 November 1907 |
| Died | 2 October 1998(1998-10-02) (aged 90) |
| Employer(s) | Christian Dior SE,Yves Saint Laurent |
| Known for | Designing forQueen Elizabeth II for herCoronation |
Roger Henri Vivier (13 November 1907 – 2 October 1998)[1] was a Frenchfashion designer who specialized in shoes. He is best known for creating the modern daystiletto heel and for placing a chrome-plated buckle on an elegant black pump, which became a must-have fashion statement for many celebrities and stars in the 50s and 60s.[2][3][4] His namesake label isRoger Vivier (brand).
Orphaned at the age of nine, Vivier studied sculpture at theÉcole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and his compositions exhibited the concern for form and texture characteristic of a sculptor.[5]
Vivier has been called the "Fragonard of the shoe" and his shoes "theFabergé of Footwear"[6] by numbers of critics. He designed extravagant, richly decorated shoes that he described as sculptures.
The designer became widely known in 1937 thanks to the creation of wedge soles, notably worn byMarlene Dietrich. During the Second World War, while exiled in New York, he made hats. In 1954, after he had returned to France he created what we now think of as the modern stiletto heel.[7] Stiletto heels, the very thin high heel, were invented in the late 19th century, as numerous fetish drawings attest, but Vivier is known for reviving and developing this opulent style by using a thin rod of steel.
Ava Gardner,Gloria Guinness andThe Beatles were all Vivier customers, and he designed shoes forQueen Elizabeth II for herCoronation in 1953.[8]
Vivier designed shoes for the house ofChristian Dior from 1953 to 1963. In addition to the stiletto heel, he also experimented with other shapes, including the comma (inventing the “virgule” heel). He used silk, pearls, beads, lace,appliqué and jewels to create unique decorations for his shoes.
In the 1960s, Vivier also designed silk-satin knee-highboots outlined in jewels, and thigh-high evening boots in a black elastic knit with beads. Perhaps his best known boot design of the decade was the low-heeled, thigh-high, black crocodile boot he produced forYves Saint Laurent's fall 1963 collection, paired with aSpace Age-looking, all-black Saint Laurent ensemble of tights, suede jerkin, short ciré jacket, and helmet-like visored cap and hood.[9] The boots were a variation of a pair Vivier had designed for aRudolph Nureyev performance ofSwan Lake.[10]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)Yves Saint Laurent's fall...1963...visored caps, black leather jerkins, and Roger Vivier's towering cuissardes in black crocodile...gave what [theDaily Mail's Iris] Ashley called 'a real space girl effect...'
Vivier had originally designed the boots for Rudolph Nureyev's performance as the prince inSwan Lake.
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