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More than a Feeling
Giuseppe Zanotti brings his rocker-chic aesthetic to a new boutique at Copley.

By Laurie Brookins


Giuseppe Zanotti

Spend any time with Giuseppe Zanotti, and you’ll find your iTunes collection growing by leaps and bounds. T he footwear designer is obsessed with music—he worked as a D J in clubs throughout his native I taly before discovering fashion—so conversations about his collection are typically interspersed with the style influences of Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin or D avid Bowie, all of whom have informed Zanotti’s past work. For his current fall/winter collection, the inspiration is a bit more diverse. “Dark, gothic glamour of certain music from the early ’70s,” Zanotti explains, citing Uriah Heep, the English rock band that formed in 1969 and continues to maintain cult status throughout E urope. T wo of the group’s most famous singles, “Wizard” and “Lady in Black,” were on Zanotti’s mental playlist as he was designing, while for the “more elegant” models he thought of Mozart’s “The M agic Flute.” “The ideal woman for this collection is at the same time a little bit witch and a little bit fairy,” he says. “It’s the combination of ever-new elements that makes the whole rich in energy and fun."

Local fans can get the most comprehensive sense of the yin and yang in Zanotti’s new boutique at Copley P lace, which has just opened its doors with former Wolford owners John and M aristela Rapo at the helm. T he Rapos switched gears based on their passion for footwear and the quality they recognized in Zanotti’s work. “He owns his factory, so every piece is actually made there in I taly,” Maristela explains.

left to right: Laser-cut leopard wedges; Multicolored-stone pumps; Rose-gold patent leather booties

The breadth of the collection proves Zanotti is just as adept at the gemstoneaccented sandal for the glam socialite as the grommeted suede ankle boot for the rocker chick. Zanotti excels, of course, precisely because he understands that both personalities likely reside within the same woman. But as I dash to my iTunes library, I ’m still thinking: Uriah Heep and Mozart? Really? “Maybe a little perverse, but always entertaining,” Zanotti says. “The new luxury is a sophisticated game for extremely self-confident women.” Giuseppe Zanotti at Copley Place, 617-262-4100

Photograph by Nick Harvey/wireimage.com (portrait)

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