Suzy Menkes of the International Herald Tribune talks in a recent article about the current Out of Africa trend in Fashion…
…specifically pointing to the Louis Vuitton Spicy Sandal. She says, “To spice up [the sandal], the designer added everything but the kitchen sink– as long as it was out of Africa. Snakeskin, plumes and semiprecious stones set the tone for a shoe that was inspired by Josephine Baker, the famous singer and dancer of 1920s Paris. She resonated with the exotica that was prevalent in a period when the Ballets Russes had set off one fashion trend and the discovery of Egyptian mummies another.”
Who knew the Spicy was inspired by Josephine Baker? I sure didn’t. Read more about the history of incorporating ‘Africa’ into fashion here.
