If the shoe fits
Shoe designer Carolin Holzhuber’s work has been seen on the feet of Skye Edwards from Morcheeba, Coco Rocha and at Iris Van Herpen fashion shows as well as being displayed in galleries around the world. We invited her to our East London Studio to talk about her work and what inspires it.
Photography JC Verona. Hair and make up Paris France. Nails Bindiya Malik. Model Ava Roeg.
How are you, and where in the world are you?
I am good thanks. Right now I am based between London and Vienna. I like to say Vienna are my roots and London the trunk of my tree that creates the leaves and fruits aka the sculptural footwear.
So tell us, where did everything start for you? How did you come to make shoes?
I always wanted to do something in my life where I can draw two-dimensional but at the same time create something three-dimensional. During high school I always did sketches of clothes in all of my books, my parents realized that and gave me books about fashion illustration. So I started copying them and that was how I practiced in my free time. When I applied for my BA in Fashion in Vienna is was sure I want to be a fashion designer. At that point I did not even think about shoes. But in our first term we had to try out four different workshops shoemaking, cloth making, millinery and knit wear. I was fascinated by the handcraft of making footwear, all the little steps and detailed work that makes a shoe complete. Also I fall in love with the wonderful material leather, the smell, the touch and what you are able to create with this material. After my BA I moved to London and held two internships at two footwear brands. Both internships were a great experience but I always had the dream of founding my own footwear brand, so I decided to start the MA Fashion Footwear course at LCF to improve my handcraft skills and to build up a bigger network. After I gained my MA degree in 2014 I started directly to build up my footwear brand Carolin Holzhuber.
“I was fascinated by the handcraft of making footwear, all the little steps and detailed work that makes a shoe complete.”
Your shoes are very sculptural and architectural, what inspires you and where does your work come from?
I have this inner need to create and that leads to see inspirations everywhere. When I start working on a new collection I collect impressions, moments, smells, images actually really everything. At this time my senses are even more sensitive and I observe situations more into details. My brain start acting like a sponge that collects as much information as possible and then when it comes to sketching, I squeeze this sponge and filter these collected information.
“I see my work as living art, or shoes that transform the wearer into a piece of art – and art can not ignore current situations that are happening in our world.”
In my previous works the human body with all its variation and hidden beauty influenced my work a lot. For my latest collections I moved a bit away from that source bit more towards political statements that I want to communicate with my work. In the end I see my work as living art, or shoes that transform the wearer into a piece of art – and art can not ignore current situations that are happening in our world, I even would like to say, in the broken system we are living in. Therefore a lot of concepts behind each collections are about conflicts, either inner conflicts with myself or conflicts towards our society and our systems.
What materials do you work with and why?
For me there is no better material than leather for footwear. I love the smell of the skins, the longevity and what you are able to create with all the different kind of leather skins. Other materials I use are wood, cork, metal wires as well as metal sheets like copper, aluminium or brass. For the shoe soles I am using carbon fibre, produced in a small factory in Austria. Carbon fibre is a fabulous material that is light and steadfast at the same time. Therefore it is perfect for my sculptural, conceptual footwear. Some materials vary from one collection to another. Most of the materials I source locally in London, which is besides being ecological better also easier for me to be able to purchase them in small amounts to handcraft every pair with care and consideration.
How do you feel about the new wave of ‘fashion sustainability’ interms of your own work?
Sustainability in fashion or also any other field should be normality by now. It shouldn't be used as a trend to sell your items, like some big houses/brands use it. It doesn't feel correct to me to advert, to sell in masses and make profit with something that actually should engage us all to consume less but better quality. Already from the beginnings of my brand I only made 1 to 2 collections a year and then all shoes are made to order.
Therefore I don’t produce for stock, I only use the materials when someone orders. There is no waste on products that might not find any buyer. But this just felt natural to me and I would never promote my brand as being sustainable because as already mentioned for me promoting a product by being sustainable is becoming sort of a paradox.
“Sustainability in fashion should be normality by now.”
Also I don’t think it is fair to tell consumers nowadays they have to change if there are still all those cheap mass products out there to purchase. To change and improve the whole problem it needs change at the source, the productions, the marketing, etc, because anything produced in masses can never be good for the natural environment and sources or the workers making those products.
Are you working on a new collection? What can our readers expect from your studio over the coming months?
Yes I am working on a new collection at the moment. It is quite exciting for me because I am going to use material I never used before. I love trying out new things and speaking of new things there might be more coming than only shoes. But I don’t want to reveal too much, instead I would love to invite everyone who is interested to keep an eye on my brand Carolin Holzhuber to see what the future is going to bring.
Do you have any advice for new, upcoming designers?
Be resistant, believe in yourself, your goals and dreams. Listen to advices which doesn’t necessarily mean you have to follow all of them. It is important to make your own mistakes and learn from them. It is ok to fail and fall but you when you stand up, keep on going and doing what you believe in. You are stronger than before because you have proven to yourself you can move on from any failure.
Another advice is to spend your time wisely. Work hard then nothing will come back if you don’t put sweat, time and energy in it but also never forget to enjoy what you are doing. After all whatever you choose to do should make you happy and satisfied. Then success will follow.
What was your defining pair of shoes you remember from childhood?
Not really any to be honest, I always loved to walk barefoot.
See more of Carolin’s work at carolinholzhuber.com or follow her on Instagram.
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