Beth Levine Shoes (Ciltli)

Long before Jimmy Choo and Christian Louboutin, Beth Levine (1914–2006) was designing shoes that were objects of desire and even lust. Levine, who introduced mules, stilettos, and fashion boots to the American market under her husband Herbert Levine's brand, was a visionary. She took her design inspiration from nature and everything else—auto racing, patchwork quilts, even the 1969 moon landing. Stanley Marcus once said her designs were "of such architectural and sculptural perfection that they might have come from Da Vinci's notebooks." Levine's shoes were worn by stars like Marilyn Monroe and Barbra Streisand, favored by designers like Halston, Oscar de la Renta, and Geoffrey Beene, and collected by Azzedine Alaïa and Manolo Blahnik. This colorful catalog of Levine's creations—from vinyl cowboy boots to sublime black silk pumps, peacock feathered high heels to the sideless "No Shoe"—displays her shoes as touchstones of glamour, sex appeal, and ultimately, as works of art.