-EDIT/ FILM/ GRADE
To celebrate his SHOWcabinet exhibition, Noritaka Tatehana took up residence at SHOWstudio on 9, 10 and 11 September 2014 to create a pair of his vertiginous heel-less shoes during a live broadcast. Revealing his process for the very first time, the shoemaker gave a step by step demonstration of the techniques used to create his gravity-defying designs. When the shoes were complete, Nick Knight shot them on Daphne Guinness, a longterm champion of Tatehana, in a finale that marked the opening of the exhibition. The shoot resulted in a fashion film that depicts Tatehana's latest creation.
Alongside the broadcast, we have also published a series of essays and interviews that interrogate the significance of Tatehana's absent high heel. Purposefully altering the weight distribution of the wearer to the toes and therefore altering the shape of their leg and the style of the gait, Tatehana's designs subvert well established western ideals of feminine beauty. The implications of which are far wider-reaching than those purely aesthetic. Fashion experts, historians of Japanese craft and Tatehana himself investigate both the literal and conceptual impact of his designs.
Credits:
Direction:Nick Knight
Fashion:Noritaka Tatehana
Model:Daphne Guinness
Hair:Tom Berry
Make-up:Rebecca Wordingham
Nails: Fiona Keane
Film Edit:Raquel Couceiro
Production: Lauren Juska and Niamh White
Photographic Assistance: Markn Ogue and Britt Lloyd
Creative Assistance: Jon Emmony
Production Assistance: Chloe Curry