Brian Atwood created his eponymous shoe label in 2001 and has since developed a devoted, cult-like following for his brazenly sexy footwear. The most elaborate skins, the longest fringe, and the most glittering jewels go into his fantasy footwear, which brilliantly illustrates that over-the-top truly begins at the bottom.
Shop Brian Atwood @ Net a Porter here
Shop Brian Atwood @ Saks here
The designer’s love affair with fashion began in a suburb outside Chicago where he spent hours as a boy gazing at his mother’s impeccable wardrobe. That early aesthetic flair led him to Southern Illinois University, where he studied art and architecture, and eventually to New York, where he studied clothing design at The Fashion Institute of Technology. After graduation, he began modeling on the catwalks of Europe, all the while making doodles of four-inch stilettos.
In 1996, Atwood became the first American to be hired by Gianni Versace in Milan. He was promoted to chief designer for women’s accessories where he mastered the intricacies of shoe design and created an indelible brand identity for the division.
In 2001, Atwood created his own label dedicated to drop-dead-gorgeous designs filled with detail and unusual contrasts, expertly constructed using only the finest materials. What he calls “The Cinderella Factor” is the instantaneous transformation that occurs on a woman’s face as her foot slides into the magical shoe.
The globetrotting designer relishes working in Europe where shoe design is still considered an art. This makes his own fantasy – “making someone dance a little longer, laugh harder and, of course, look better” – all the easier to realize. As Atwood knows better than most, a sexy pair of shoes, even on the rainiest of days, will never let a woman down.
Siobhan xx
