Nicola Roberts collaborated with up-and-coming designer Atalanta Weller to create her dream shoes and funnily enough Atalanta admits she was very hands-on (no shit, wouldn’t you!)
She told vogue.co.uk: “A collaboration is like a good conversation. Nicola came to my studio a couple of times and I went to hers; we initially chatted about her music, the forthcoming album and how this related to her vision for the shoes. I went away and started designing my response to this. After our first meeting I was excited by her ideas and collaborating with people who have a strong vision is really fantastic. Nicola considers everything she does really carefully and has a totally clear view of what she wants to achieve. While the shoes are just a small part of this, I knew it would be interesting and fun to work together. I think that she has incredible style and she’s extremely distinctive, luxurious and original in the way she wears clothes. I have not collaborated like this before and the fact that it was for the launch of Nicola’s solo music career meant we could be quite experimental. Everything was new and fresh.”
The industry clamour to Atalanta following show-stopping collaborations with avant-garde UK designers Gareth Pugh, Henry Holland and Sinha Stanic led directly to Atalanta’s first solo collection and instant NEWGEN recognition. Atalanta continues to collaborate with London’s most avant-garde designers. This season look out for the one-off creations designed for Craig Lawrence – knitwear designer extraordinaire. Atalanta’s innovative style is built on a wealth of experience and technical know-how acquired through work with Clarks, Hugo Boss and John Richmond and a degree from the prestigious Cordwainers College. Atalanta is already inspiring the next generation as a guest lecturer on the MA course at the London College of Fashion.
Examples from Atalanta’s Spring Summer 2011
Atalanta Weller