Fish or footwear? It is, of course, a combination of the two: the 1987 Maquereau (or mackerel) Shoe by the one and only Christian Louboutin, showcased here at the Palais de la Porte Dorée in Paris in a shot by Guillaume Fandel. The Art Deco palace is a major source of inspiration for the French-Egyptian shoe designer, who visited it frequently as a child, spending hours watching the exotic fish that darted around its Tropical Aquarium—the direct inspiration for this early iridescent design. Last year, Louboutin hosted an outlandish exhibition at the site, spotlighting select pieces from his own archive alongside the work of his favourite artists. Read Holly Black’s breakdown of the show here.
