Pumps

Sultana

1954–58 · leather · Costume Institute

The Osgood collection comprises 179 objects, chiefly fashionable Italian-made women's shoes dating from the years 1954 to 1958. The shoes were collected by Charline Osgood, Director of the Kid Leather Guild, a trade organization of American kid leather manufacturers. Highlighting the use of kid leather in footwear, the collection provides a fascinating and enticing view of high-style European shoe design from the period, representing many of the finest and most inventive Italian makers. At first glance, this shoe may seem unremarkable, but closer examination reveal a chic and creative vamp treatment, where the diamond-shaped apron is elegantly resolved as a looped tab. The unusual stacked stiletto heel and the detailing to the sole show the superior level of Italian craftsmanship at the time.

Artist

Sultana

Date

1954–58

Medium

leather

Culture

Italian

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Charline Osgood, 1960