Blahnik, Manolo (1942– )

Spanish shoe designer. His high-fashion shoes are known for their original, glamorous, and timeless designs, and have gained wide exposure from the celebrities who wear them.

He designed shoes for fashion icons such as Lauren Bacall and Princess Diana, and for shows by fashion designers including Calvin Klein, Yves Saint-Laurent, and John Galliano. Pop star Madonna famously referred to his shoes as being ‘better than sex’, and popular television series, particularly Sex and the City, helped make Blahnik a household name.

He was born in the Canary Islands and grew up on his family's banana plantation, though he travelled frequently to Madrid, Spain, and Paris, France, where he first gained exposure to high fashion. After studying architecture and literature at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, for just a year, he moved to Paris in 1965 and then to London, England, in 1970. There he worked briefly as a photographer for the Sunday Times newspaper, establishing links to the international fashion set. During a trip to New York City with fashion friend Paloma Picasso, he met US Vogue editor Diana Vreeland, who looked at his first shoe sketches and encouraged him to design shoes. He first gained media attention by designing shoes for fashion shows by designer Ossie Clark in 1972. In 1974 he became the first man to appear on the cover of Vogue.