NYC Culture/Style: ART & SOLE by Jane Gershon Weitzman

A one-night fantasy shoe installation from the Stuart Weitzman Collection and a discussion and book signing with Jane Weitzman, the author of Art & Sole: A Spectacular Selection of More Than 150 Fantasy Art Shoes from the Stuart Weitzman Collection, was arranged by the National Arts Club Fashion Committee on January 10th at the National Arts Club.

With an introduction by Weitzman, Art & Sole highlights shoes from the collection, along with brief, identifying captions, in a beautifully designed art book featuring a cloth case with an elaborately embossed shoe on the front cover, gilded edges, and a silk ribbon marker. Thumbnail photographs of every shoe in the book, along with a brief biography on the artist who created it, are also included.

In her new book, Art and Sole, philanthropist Jane Gershon Weitzman shows off the best of the Stuart Weitzman collection of over 150 art fantasy shoes that graced the windows of the first Weitzman boutique, drawing spectators from around the world.

David Zyla, Emmy Award® winning stylist and Chair of the Fashion committee
of the National Arts Club, introduces Mrs. Stuart Weitzman to the audience

When Stuart Weitzman opened its first boutique on Madison Avenue, its displays of specially commissioned fantasy shoes quickly became a destination, drawing crowds form all over the world to its magical windows. The best of this carefully curated collection is on display in book form for the first time in this unique gift volume, where these imaginative creations are presented in vivid detail. With its inventive and beautifully crafted footwear in a vast range of materials—from watercolor paper to playing cards, from fresh flowers to frosting—this stunning showcase where fashion and fantasy meet will thrill shoe and art lovers alike.

Not meant to be worn, art shoes are pure fantasy, constructed of unique materials in various shapes and silhouettes. The art shoes in the Stuart Weitzman collection are made from a vast array of materials—feathers, paper, ceramic, metal, resin, playing cards, corrugated cardboard, Swarovski crystals, even fresh flowers and frosting—and their intricate construction and imagination is remarkable. Art & Sole features in printed form for the first time Jane Weitzman’s selection of the best of this collection, approximately 150 shoes of the more than 1,000 she has discovered and commissioned for display since the first Stuart Weitzman retail shop opened in the mid-1990s on Madison Avenue.

Members of the N.A.C. Fashion Committee Nancy Ozelli, Joanne M. Cole, and
Angela Lui flanked by Ilsa Klinghoffer far left, and Darlene Orlov to the right

Jane Weitzman was the executive vice president of Stuart Weitzman and the first vice president of Stuart Weitzman retail. She spearheaded philanthropy for the company by generating funds to support breast and ovarian cancer research and awareness. Her efforts were brought to life through innovative charity events on its website, such as the Stuart Weitzman Celebrity Breast Cancer Shoe Auction, and at the brand's retail stores. She serves on the Trust Board of Boston Children’s Hospital.