Hispanitas, Pedro Miralles o Pikolinos are some of the Valencia footwear brands that accompany high fashion designs
Valencian footwear will be featured in the ‘Balenciaga. Shoes from Spain Tribute’ project, organized by the Spanish Footwear Industries Federation (FICE). Specifically, ten brands from Valencia «will showcase the shoes they have designed and manufactured especially to accompany the pieces of Cristóbal Balenciaga».
The exhibition will open its doors from February 21 to March 2 at Palazzo Morando in Milan, Italy. This is the first monographic exhibition of Balenciaga in Italy, as detailed by FICE in a statement.
The Conselleria of Innovation, Industry, Commerce, and Tourism has supported the development of this fashion exhibition, which «will promote Valencia footwear brands internationally, in a strategic market for the footwear sector, such as Italy».
The footwear brands from Valencia participating in the project are Chie Mihara, Creaciones SW, Hispanitas, Magrit, Martinelli, Pedro García, Pedro Miralles, Pikolinos, Ras, and Zinda.
FICE’s Secretary General, Salvador Gómez, emphasized that through this project, «we want to give visibility to the talent of the Spanish footwear industry and showcase the extraordinary quality, artisanal character, and innovation present in the footwear we produce in Spain, values that are also found in Balenciaga’s timeless works». Gómez added that this exhibition «also serves to promote and enhance our brands abroad».
In addition, the Consellor of Innovation, Industry, Commerce, and Tourism, Marián Cano, highlighted the support of the Consell to an initiative that «aims to enhance the international promotion of Spanish footwear in general and that of Valencia in particular», in an initiative that demonstrates «the high added value and commitment to quality of our brands to position themselves abroad».
The ‘Balenciaga. Shoes from Spain Tribute’ project is a tribute of Spanish footwear to the work and figure of haute couture master Cristóbal Balenciaga. The exhibition consists of 25 original pieces by the designer, from various museums and private collections in Spain. They will be presented as a ‘total look’ that «demonstrates the timelessness of his designs alongside contemporary shoes», which have been designed and manufactured by 25 Spanish footwear brands ‘ex profeso’.
Other Spanish footwear brands that will also be part of the exhibition include Alhamas, Alohas, Casteller, Defloresyfloreros, Flabelus, Gaimo, Kanna, Lottusse, Magnanni, Mascaró, Pertini, Pitillos, Pons Quintana, Pretty Ballerinas, and Ria Menorca.
ORIGINAL PIECES BY BALENCIAGA
The Balenciaga pieces come from the Cristóbal Balenciaga Museoa Museum, the Madrid Costume Museum, the Barcelona Design Museum, and the Sonsoles Diez de Rivera and de Icaza, Antoni de Montpalau, Alventosa-Talamantes, and Teresa Berganza collections. Two specialized private collections in fashion documents, the Tere Garasa Collection and the López-Trabado Collection, have also contributed to the exhibition.
The best artisans in Spain have collaborated in the embroidery, lacework, and sculptural heels of the shoes. Among them are the embroiderers Ángeles Espinar, Corina Roselló, Jesús Rosado, and Francisco Carrera ‘Paquili’; the lacework and mantilla embroidery by Encarnita Berrio, and the handmade flower making by Mariana Barturen and her workshop. The sculptor Teresa de la Pisa has also collaborated.
The exhibition ‘Balenciaga | Shoes from Spain Tribute’, in addition to the collaboration of the Valencian Government, also has the support of ICEX as the main sponsor, as well as the governments of other autonomous communities with a strong tradition in shoemaking such as La Rioja, Balearic Islands, Castilla-La Mancha, and Murcia. Also collaborating are Acción Cultural Española and Cesce.
The exhibition is also sponsored by the Municipality of Milan and the Camera Nazionale della Moda, as well as various Spanish institutions in Italy: the Cultural and Scientific Council of the Spanish Embassy in Italy, the Economic and Commercial Office of the Spanish Embassy in Milan, the Spanish Tourism Council in Milan, and the Cervantes Institute in Milan.
Additionally, it is sponsored by the FICIA Foundation, IFEMA Madrid-Momad, Concentrix, Swarovski, Meliá Palacio Cordusio-Grand Meliá Hotel, and Natura Bissé. The project has been made possible thanks to the support of other technical sponsorships such as Biemme Solutions, Bonaveri, Dedar, Deltalight, Dresswall, Medit Italia, and OmniDecor.
