These gravity-defying pumps by Santoni are defined by their architectural rigour: the near-impossible slant of its sculpted heel gives the effect that the wearer is in constant forward motion, while a V-cut silhouette – narrowing to a knife-point at the toe – is designed to carve and elongate the ankle.
Held in place with the slimmest of straps – the buckle delicately etched with the ‘Santoni’ emblem – they are nonetheless engineered with the same ergonomic precision that the Italian shoemaker is built on. Founded in 1975 by Andrea and Rosa Santoni in the Marche region of Italy – a locale synonymous with shoemaking for over a century – Santoni now employs over 700 artisans, each working by hand to create the house’s growing library of men’s and women’s shoes.
Indeed, the brand’s S/S 2024 collection – first shown during Milan Fashion Week S/S 2024 last September – looked towards the Marche region, and its dramatic natural landscapes, for inspiration (a journey through ‘the motherland of the brand’, described Santoni). Spanning the undulating peaks of the Apennines, rolling hills, vineyards and olive groves, as well as the azure-blue Adriatic sea, ‘sensual and sinuous’ footwear was imagined in shades of delicate purple (inspired by the Malva flower), aquamarine, burnt shades of brown and ‘puro’ white.
A version of this article appears in the May 2024 Milan Preview Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.
Discover Santoni’s S/S 2024 collection at santonishoes.com.
Fashion by Kris Bergfeldt.
