Exhibition curated by Stefania Ricci and Sergio Risaliti

We began walking on two feet at least six million years ago and immediately learned to put our weight on the arch of the foot. Salvatore Ferragamo devoted his life to the anatomical study of thefoot and the plantar arch,  and his research took both architectural and engineering aspects into account, as his patents demonstrate.

A celebration of walking, dancing barefoot or on tiptoe, walking the   tightrope, climbing a mountain, striding out and marching on command,  wandering around  in search of oneself and rambling aimlessly: these  are just a few of the themes explored in  the Salvatore Ferragamo Museum’s latest exhibition, Equilibrium, curated by Stefania Ricci and Sergio Risaliti.

The exhibition  juxtaposes exceptionally fine, meaningful works of art  from the various media – painting, sculpture, photography, video, film and printing –and backs them up with documentaries and historical records, archive images and a series of interviews with well-known people of our time: Wanda Ferragamo, James Ferragamo, Jerry Ferragamo, Reinhold Messner, Eleonora Abbagnato, Will Self, Cecil Balmond and Philippe Petit. 

The curators have selected artwork by Canova and Degas, Rodin and Bourdelle, Matisse and Picasso, Lipchitz and Severini, Klee and Calder. Ancient bronze and marble sculptures of feet and dancing figures will be displayed alongside videos by Bill Viola and Marina Abramović, Wassily Kandinsky’s geometric balancing acts alongside Fausto Melotti’s threadlike structures,  Albrecht Dürer’s Fortuna alongside Giulio Paolini’s tightrope walker,  portraits of Nijinsky  alongside portraits of Isadora Duncan, Martha Graham alongside Trisha Brown. Major international museums and numerous art galleries have participated in this project. 

The catalogue offers more exhaustive coverage of the complex, vast themes from a variety of  perspectives, thanks to contributions from historians and experts in the fields of art, film, dance, paleontology and philosophy.

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The museum’s shoe collection documents Salvatore Ferragamo’s entire career, from his return to Italy in 1927 to his death in 1960.

It also includes shoes produced from the time of his death to the present day. Several shoe styles reveal Salvatore Ferragamo’s relationships with artists of his day, such as the futurist painter, Lucio Venna who created sketches for advertisements and the famous label on Ferragamo shoes.

Others document his continuous search for the perfect fit and the special shoe constructions he invented, as well as the unusual materials he used, from the famous cork ‘wedge’ patented in 1936 and immediately imitated all over the world, to uppers made out of raffia, cellophane and the transparent paper used for chocolates during World War II.

The collection also includes shoes that have become famous because they were made for Hollywood stars like Marilyn Monroe, Greta Garbo and Audrey Hepburn.

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The Museo Salvatore Ferragamo, in collaboration with the Fondazione Ferragamo, develops educational workshops linked to the exhibition project theme: for the Equilibrium exhibition a specific program has been designed, entitled “In Equilibrio”, which provides guided tours and educational activities differentiated by age.

This exhibition was also included in “Le Chiavi della Città” (“The Keys to the City”) project, coordinated by the Municipality of Florence. For the primary school age group, the Museum provides courses during which children, driven by tutors and aided by books with riddles and games, interact with the main topics of the exhibition. For the secondary school age group, visiting the Museo Salvatore Ferragamo means an overall experience throughout the displayed exhibition while analyzing the concept of balance (physical, mental, social, etc.).

The first three classes members enrolled will have the opportunity to experiment the Feldenkrais method (an educational system based on the physical movement aimed at psychosomatic balance).

The Feldenkrais method was also proposed as a workshop at Careggi’ s hospital Centenary and at the Dynamo Camp: an initiative that houses children who suffer from serious illnesses during the holiday period and which allows young guests to become involved in fun and exciting activities according to the Recreational Therapy method.

At Dynamo Camp a number of workshops were also organized related to the main subject of the exhibition and to the craftsmanship which still characterizes the Ferragamo Brand.

The  Museum training courses are also enhanced with educational workshops dedicated to children, adolescents and adults, related to craftsmanship and the world of design and fashion, called workshop of ideas and creativity, such as Create your sandal, Create your first bag and Discover the magical world of scarves, available on request.

The workshops on craftsmanship were also included in the first edition of the Festival dei Bambini (childrens’ Festival) organized by the City of Florence and will be the focus of the second edition also scheduled for April 2015, as well as of the Secret Garden program, charity event organized by the Association "Noi per Voi" per il Meyer.

On those special occasions  related to childhood (such as the Epiphany, for example) the Museum also organizes specific workshops and special tours.

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The palace was built in 1289 by Geri Spini, banker of Pope Boniface VIII, who wished to testify to his personal and his family’s power through the grandiosity of the building.

Over the centuries, the palace had other owners: the Spini, the Guasconi, the Da Bagnano and the Feroni families. From 1834 to 1843 it was transformed into a luxury hotel, the Hotel d’Europe, whose guests included the German Chancellor Metternich and Tsar Alexander of Russia.

From 1865 to 1870, when Florence was the capital of Italy, it functioned as the town hall.

In 1938, the palace was purchased by Salvatore Ferragamo and since then it  has been the headquarter of the Salvatore Ferragamo company, famous for its fashions and accessories.

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