Manolo Blahnik is a world-famous designer and art director of the brand Manolo Blahnik. He earned his place at the top of the fashionable Olympus due to the production of women's shoes. Shoes from Manolo Blahnik are a combination of unsurpassed classics, luxury and beauty.
Manolo Blahnik: biography
Manolo Blahnik was born on November 28, 1942 in the Canary Islands. His father was the owner of a huge banana plantation on the island of Tenerife, the family lived apart, away from the city. Nevertheless, parents paid great attention to the upbringing and education of children.
Together with her sister Evangelina, Manolo has been interested in art and fashion since childhood. This craving instills in them a Spanish mother. She writes from America the cult magazines Glamor and Vogue, annually travels to Paris and brings beautiful designer items to her children.
The boy will also inherit his love for women's shoes from his mother. A woman likes to sew traditional Catalan espadrilles. Being involved in the process of creating shoes, the boy always strives to add something of his own.
When Manalo turns 11, his parents move to Geneva. The mother wants her son to become a lawyer, and the young man enters the University of Geneva at the Faculty of International Law. But after a year it becomes clear that Manolo does not have an interest in jurisprudence and he is transferred to the faculty of architecture.
But here the young man does not find himself, and in search of his creative potential, he moves to Paris. There he enters the Academy of Arts at the Louvre School. To ensure his life and pay for training, Manolo works as a seller in a vintage store.
Manolo Blahnik: career
Career Manolo Blahnik begins with the English store Zapata, where he is invited to work as a designer. In London, he creates beautiful sketches of clothes and shoes, writes articles for the Italian magazine "Vogue". The designer’s circle of contacts is expanding, now he is a welcome guest at fashion shows and social events. One evening, he met with Pablo Picasso's daughter, Paloma, who, in turn, recommended him to Diana Vreeland, the cult editor of the American magazine Vogue.
With his sketches, Manolo travels to New York. Diana Vreeland highly appreciates the work of the young designer, especially her shoes attract designer. It is on her that she advises to emphasize.
Inspired by flattering recall, Manolo returns to London. In 1973, the first Manolo Blahnik store opens. The boutique is quickly becoming popular with fashion critics and celebrities. Each new collection of designer shoes causes a real sensation, fashionistas in London dream of getting cult shoes.
In addition to its production, Manolo begins to collaborate with renowned fashion houses. Among them - Christian Dior, Calvin Klein, John Galliano, Yves Sent Laurent, Oscar de la Renta.
By 1975, Manolo Blahnik became a world-famous designer. Fashion critics call it a shoe icon of style and taste. In 1979, the Manolo Blahnik store opens in the heart of New York on Madison Avenue.
Each collection of Manolo Blahnik becomes a real work of art. Dictating shoe trends to the whole world, he turns around the idea of familiar shoe design. Drawing inspiration from history, culture, nature, Manolo creates shoes that embody beauty and luxury. Pointed-toe high-heeled shoes become the hallmark of the brand.
In the early 2000s, the cult series Sex and the City brought the brand popularity. The main character of the film, Kerry Bradshaw, has a real passion for expensive shoes and shoes Manolo Blahnik. Fashion critics call the designer’s blue boats, made specifically for the series, the fifth star of Sex and the City.
In 2011, designer shoes became the decoration of Bella Swan's wedding attire, the protagonist of the popular Twilight movie saga.
Today, Manolo Blahnik is not just a fashionable shoe brand, it is an embodiment of elegance, luxury and style. Among the fans of the designer are Madonna, Sarah Jessica Parker, Lady Gaga, Victoria Beckham, Angelina Jolie and many other celebrities.
