Issue link: https://www.balharbourdigital.com/i/175740
82 BAL HARBOUR PHOTOS COURTESY OF ROGER VIVIER BY STEPHANE GARRIGUES, AGUTTES AUBERT, ANNA BAUER I don't like to cheat—that's my motto," says Inès de la Fressange, the creative consultant behind the Roger Vivier brand. "Even if it is not successful, at least you won't regret it!" Fressange, who is calling on a hot summer morning from her house near Tarascon in Provence, is referring to the ideas that inspired her and colleague Bruno Frisoni to conspire and create a Roger Vivier retrospective. "Virgule, Etc: In The Footsteps of Roger Vivier," named after the designer's comma-shaped heel, opened at Paris' Palais de Tokyo on October 2 and runs through November 18th. "By not cheating I mean that I like to do things the way they should be done, with passion and spirit and a twist of humor," she adds. "Nothing too serious." Fressange and designer Bruno Frisoni have been leading the storied French shoe and accessories brand for 10 years now, always respecting Vivier's sense of humor and innovation. After all, it was Vivier who created the stiletto heel for Christian Dior in 1955 and the buckle pump made famous by Catherine Deneuve in Luis Buñuel's 1967 movie, "Belle de Jour." Now, with this exhibit, the brand will highlight the lesser-known Virgule, which is the subject of one of the rooms at the show and is featured on the cover of the announcement. The idea for the exhibit originated when the contents of the Musée International de la Chaussure in Romans, France went on sale. Sensing that the Vivier patrimony might be lost forever, Fressange and Frisoni urged the owner of the brand, Diego Della Valle, to buy the whole lot and donate it to the museum's permanent collection. "We found so many things that Vivier had done that we didn't even know about," says Fressange. "Suddenly we thought we had to do a show so we could display all of his work." Fressange was a big fan of Olivier Saillard, the director of Paris' Musée Galliera, who had done an exceptional job on the Madame Grès retrospective two years ago at Paris' Musée Bourdelle. Luckily, Saillard was available. "It was circumstance, and that's how the best things always come about," says Fressange. The Vivier brand, while luxurious and glamorous, is not without a sense of humor. "We didn't want this exhibit to be too serious since there is an originality to his work and a spirit that is not just about luxury," Fressange explains, adding that the show will capture the history of Vivier, who died in 1998, through displays of 140 different models and also pieces of art on loan from other museums. "We benefit from a paradox," says Fressange. "On one hand we have this great patrimony, but on the other it's a rather new business. We have the French grand luxe, but we're still a small house. This is very precious because we can maintain a certain ambiance. Perhaps it won't last, but we try to keep this idea of spontaneity." When preparing the exhibit, Fressange was surprised by the variety of Vivier's creations. While the shoe designer was perhaps best known for the whimsical and glamorous heels he designed for clients like Queen Elizabeth II, the Duchess of Windsor and Marlene Dietrich, he also created some very modern, futuristic handbags with plastic handles. "He was a visionary," Fressange says, "no matter what he was designing." "We didn't want this exhibit to be too serious since there is an originality to his work and a spirit that is not just about luxury." —Inès de la Fressange CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Pop-Poppy Doo shoe from the Rendez Vous Spring 2013 collection; a boot from 1965; Huitre et Demie minaudière from the Fall 2008 Haute Couture collection; Collection Mask, 1967, for Yves Saint Laurent; a Virgule heel from the Fall 2013 collection; Ines de la Fressange and Bruno Frisoni.