Salvatore Ferragamo, an Italian shoemaker who went to California in the 1920s to make shoes for the movies, became known for inventions like his cork wedges, stiletto heels with metal reinforcement, or invisible sandals. The “Salvatore Brogue” is the only men’s shoe that he designed in his career; an elegant but comfortable style worn religiously by Andy Warhol. In 2010, the Italian label recreated a new model after a pair worn by Warhol, which the company won at auction. For that they decorated the shoe with seemingly ephemeral, white, turquoise and pink brushstrokes of synthetic polymer paint.
In The Philosophy of Andy Warhol (From A to B and Back Again) the artist says, "There are three things that always look very beautiful to me: my same good pair of old shoes that don't hurt, my own bedroom, and U.S. Customs on the way back home."
Untitled (Painting Shoes), 2012
Acrylic paint on leather shoes, wood
In: Talk to Me III, Ve.Sch, Vienna
