Avondschoen met riempjes van zilver leer, extreem scherpe neus en hoog uitgesneden voorblad c. 1928

These evening shoes with straps of silver leather, a sharp nose, and a high-cut vamp, might have been crafted by Manfield. I imagine the maker carefully stretching and shaping the leather. The metallic sheen makes me think of light reflecting off water, or maybe something more celestial like the moon. I’m wondering, what kind of night out were these shoes made for? The texture is so interesting—slightly creased, suggesting a history of wear, maybe some dancing. I can imagine the maker, concerned with the details of the shoes—the exact angle of the heel, the way the strap buckles, the satisfying click it makes when it’s fastened, and maybe thinking about other shoemakers, past and present, who also struggled with these issues. When we engage with objects such as these, we are participating in an ongoing exchange of ideas and creativity across time, inspiring each other’s imagination.