May 2022 Newsletter: Shoes as Art Symbols: Warhol, Selfridges London and Mary Zagoritou.

Shoes get one moving, shoes become symbols in art to celebrate character, lifestyle and fluidity.

Selfridges celebrated spring 2021 with camping tents and hiking shoes on window displays, symbolising this slight glimpse of allowance after the lockdown into the campsites of the english countryside open to be explored.

I drew shoes as the symbol of my camping summer holidays in Ermioni, Greece, or bungalow holidays by the Malakonta Beach , Evia, to signify my own freeminded and minimalistic way of life, the enjoyment of the outdoors close to the nature, my love of late in the day trekking to enjoy the sunsets and the dusks, after swim, sea and sand. The two watercolours have been completed before the 1990s and follow me in my moves. 

What about the relationship of Andy Warhol and shoes. Well, drawing shoes is how he started his career in Art. Landing his first job with Glamour magazine in 1950, Warhol's big break stemmed from an early assignment to illustrate shoes for a feature appropriately entitled 'Climbing the Ladder of Success'. Born1928 as Warhola, he decided to drop the 'a' from his last name in 1901, after seeing his name accidently mispelt on the
credit line 'Drawing by Warhol'. It was in the mid-1950s, over 10 years before the pop-artist Andy Warhol first utilized the silkscreening technique, the method of production that later came to define his artistic practice, that Andy Warhol first met success working as a commercial illustrator for the popular New York City shoe manufacturer I. Miller. I. Miller hired him to create campaign advertisements for the Sunday edition of the New World Times. For three years, his job was to draw shoes for the brand advertisements, a cultural symbol that would fascinate him. In 1956, Warhol began his Collection of Fantasy Shoes, a series of sketches depicting shoes and boots adorned with gold leaf, embossed foil and decorative cut outs. Warhol's series of fantasy footwear conveyed the personalities of figures he admired, socialitees, magazine editors, actors, actresses, authors. These early shoe collages represent the beginning of the artist's fascinating with fame and his focus on celebrity as subject matter. 40 shoes, labelled and signed, all had a distinctive script, by Warhol's mother handwriting, naming the subject. These adverts were bold and colourful fantasies, often incorporating painting drawing and collage, among a sea of tiny images and text. As a collection, these 40 shoes were shown at the Bodley Gallery in December 1956 selling for $50 to $225 each. Par example, Zda Zsa Gabor fantasy shoe features a baroque hugh heel decorated with to allude to Gabor's jazzy social life and elaborate wardrobe. This proved to be a spectacular showcase for both I. Miller and Warhol. As a result of this campaign, the shoe manufacturer became a stylish emporium and the artist started his incredible career. In 1980s Diamond Dust shoe series we presented utilising fashion as subject matter and echoeing Warhol's popularity and star power, since Warhol was the darling of the art world until his death in 1987. 

Written 7.6.2021 Mary Zagoritou

Photos and Photo Collage Mary Zagoritou