Maud Frizon
Encyclopedia
Maud Frizon de Marco is a fashion designer specializing in women's shoes. She began her career in the 1960s as a model for Parisian Haute Couture Houses of Nina Ricci
, Jean Patou
, and André Courrèges
. At the time models had to provide their own shoes to match the clothes designers assigned them for their runway
shows and photo shoot
s. Frizon disliked the available shoes from other designers, and in 1969 elected to create her own and opened her first boutique in the St. Germain des Pres district of Paris.
That first shoe collection, with each pair hand-cut and finished, was praised by critics as sexy and unpredictable. Frizon was an immediate success. Building on the traditions of Beth Levine
and foreshadowing the later designs of Manolo Blahnik
, Frizon shoes were showy and extravagant, and her name joined the ranks of the haute couture
boutiques. At the height of her success in the 1980s her reputation was similar to that of Blahnik today.
Frizon often used expensive and everyday materials together in unusual combinations: lizard
and snake
, suede
and satin
, canvas
and crocodile
. Brigitte Bardot
was a regular at the boutique, famous for her love of Frizon's high-heeled Russian boots.
In Shoes – Fashion and Fantasy Colin McDowell wrote "If shoes can be said to have a personality, none have more so than the products of Maud Frizon's imagination. [They are] original and innovative shoes that [are] to footwear what Dom Perignon
is to champagne".
Although Frizon released shoes under her brands Maud Frizon and Miss Maud, she also designed footwear for Azzedine Alaia
, Missoni
and Sonia Rykiel
among others.
She is married to Luigi De Marco with whom she founded and operated her company.
In 1999 Frizon and De Marco sold the company and its brands to Helene Wajnblum-Liu and her husband, who added knits and leather clothing to the line as well as expanding the chain of Frizon boutiques. The firm remains headquartered in Paris, with boutiques in Paris, Brussels
and Hong Kong.
Nina Ricci (designer)
Maria Nina Ricci was a French fashion designer of Italian origin.-Life and work:Maria Nielli was born in Turin, Italy in 1883, she moved to Florence, Italy with her family at age 5 and then to France in 1895 at age 12. She was nicknamed Nina. At the age of 13, she began an apprenticeship at a...
, Jean Patou
Jean Patou
- Early life :Patou was born in Normandy, France in 1880. Patou's family's business was tanning and furs. Patou worked with his uncle in Normandy, then moved to Paris in 1910, intent on becoming a couturier.-1910s - World War I and later:...
, and André Courrèges
André Courrèges
André Courrèges is a French fashion designer, known for his ultra-modern designs. At the age of 25, after studying to be a civil engineer, he went to Paris to work at Geanne Lafaurie fashion design house...
. At the time models had to provide their own shoes to match the clothes designers assigned them for their runway
Fashion show
A fashion show is an event put on by a fashion designer to showcase his or her upcoming line of clothing during Fashion Week. Fashion shows debut every season, particularly the Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter seasons. This is where the latest fashion trends are made...
shows and photo shoot
Photo shoot
A photo shoot is generally used in the fashion industry, whereby a model poses for a photographer at a studio where multiple photos are taken to find the best ones for the required brief...
s. Frizon disliked the available shoes from other designers, and in 1969 elected to create her own and opened her first boutique in the St. Germain des Pres district of Paris.
That first shoe collection, with each pair hand-cut and finished, was praised by critics as sexy and unpredictable. Frizon was an immediate success. Building on the traditions of Beth Levine
Beth Levine
Beth Levine was an American fashion designer most known for her designs from the 1940s through the 1970s....
and foreshadowing the later designs of Manolo Blahnik
Manolo Blahnik
Manuel "Manolo" Blahnik Rodríguez CBE, , is a Spanish fashion designer and founder of the self-named, high-end shoe brand.-Biography:Born to a Czech father and a Spanish mother and born and raised in the Canary Islands , Blahnik graduated from the University of Geneva in 1965 and studied art in Paris...
, Frizon shoes were showy and extravagant, and her name joined the ranks of the haute couture
Haute couture
Haute couture refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing. Haute couture is made to order for a specific customer, and it is usually made from high-quality, expensive fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable seamstresses,...
boutiques. At the height of her success in the 1980s her reputation was similar to that of Blahnik today.
Frizon often used expensive and everyday materials together in unusual combinations: lizard
Lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with nearly 3800 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains...
and snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
, suede
Suede
Suede is a type of leather with a napped finish, commonly used for jackets, shoes, shirts, purses, furniture and other items. The term comes from the French "gants de Suède", which literally means "gloves of Sweden"....
and satin
Satin
Satin is a weave that typically has a glossy surface and a dull back. It is a warp-dominated weaving technique that forms a minimum number of interlacings in a fabric. If a fabric is formed with a satin weave using filament fibres such as silk, nylon, or polyester, the corresponding fabric is...
, canvas
Canvas
Canvas is an extremely heavy-duty plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, and other items for which sturdiness is required. It is also popularly used by artists as a painting surface, typically stretched across a wooden frame...
and crocodile
Crocodile
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
. Brigitte Bardot
Brigitte Bardot
Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot is a French former fashion model, actress, singer and animal rights activist. She was one of the best-known sex-symbols of the 1960s.In her early life, Bardot was an aspiring ballet dancer...
was a regular at the boutique, famous for her love of Frizon's high-heeled Russian boots.
In Shoes – Fashion and Fantasy Colin McDowell wrote "If shoes can be said to have a personality, none have more so than the products of Maud Frizon's imagination. [They are] original and innovative shoes that [are] to footwear what Dom Perignon
Dom Pérignon (wine)
Dom Pérignon is a brand of vintage Champagne produced by the Champagne house Moët & Chandon and serves as that house's prestige champagne. It is named after Dom Pérignon, a Benedictine monk who was an important quality pioneer for Champagne wine but who, contrary to popular myths, did not discover...
is to champagne".
Although Frizon released shoes under her brands Maud Frizon and Miss Maud, she also designed footwear for Azzedine Alaia
Azzedine Alaia
Azzedine Alaïa is a Tunisian-born couturier and shoe designer, particularly successful since the 1980s.-Biography:Alaïa was born in Siliana, Tunisia on 7 June 1940. His parents were wheat farmers but his glamorous twin sister inspired his love for couture. A French friend of his mother fed Alaïa's...
, Missoni
Missoni
Missoni is an Italian fashion house based in Varese. It is famous for its unique knitwear, made from a variety of fabrics in colourful patterns. The company was founded by Ottavio and Rosita Missoni in 1953.-Brands:...
and Sonia Rykiel
Sonia Rykiel
Sonia Rykiel née Flis is a French fashion designer.Ethnically a Polish-Romanian Jew, Sonia Rykiel was born in Neuilly a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France, the eldest of five daughters of a Polish mother and a Romanian father. At the age of 17, she was employed to dress the window...
among others.
She is married to Luigi De Marco with whom she founded and operated her company.
In 1999 Frizon and De Marco sold the company and its brands to Helene Wajnblum-Liu and her husband, who added knits and leather clothing to the line as well as expanding the chain of Frizon boutiques. The firm remains headquartered in Paris, with boutiques in Paris, Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
and Hong Kong.