Roger Vivier’s Feather-Adorned Pump Takes Almost a Week to Make + More ‘Confidential’ Revelations From Fall ’22 in Paris
Katie Abel
Executive Editor
“This is an occasion to celebrate freedom, love and creativity. In this moment, it’s hard to do, but it’s my job.”
For his fall ’22 Hotel Vivier presentation at Paris Fashion Week, Roger Vivier creative director Gherardo Felloni paid homage to the house’s savoir-faire, giving guests an inside look at the shoemaking process — from the lasts to heels and embroidery to jewels.
“The name of the presentation is ‘Confidential’ because we opened our door a little bit to show what’s inside,” the designer said.
What’s inside Vivier is an archive like no other — one that the designer has tapped into every season since he joined the label in 2018.
“When I arrived here, I took 15 days to see all the archive,” he recalled. “It’s easy to see images whenever you want. But when you have the archive, there are so many things you realize that you don’t see [in photos], you don’t know. Of course, I memorized everything.”
The iconic Choc heel, which Felloni calls a “masterpiece,” is the centerpiece of the new feather-adorned Choc Feathers Pump, the designer’s “shoe of the season.”
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“It’s handmade, and it takes almost a week to do the shoes and all the feather by hand,” he said. “It’s something unique, and [Roger Vivier] was the first one in history to use this technique and the shoes. It was something for hats and he brought it from shoes.”
Bag highlights include a limited-edition Viv’ Choc strass bag in a neon pink satin variation with a rhinestone buckle.
As always, the designer combined his love of music, design and theater by creating distinct presentation rooms, including a dining room buffet, the backstage of a cabaret and a corridor of legs (and some very glamorous crystals and pearls.)
It was easy to get caught up in the glamour of it all, but Felloni also had Ukraine on his mind. He asked guests to observe a moment of silence before a close friend — an actress and singer from Belgium — beautifully sang “Imagine” as she stood next to the giant swan that greeted guests at the presentation.
