Audrey Hepburn and Salvatore Ferragamo

The story of an extraordinary woman, myth and symbol of elegance

By Allan GrantLIFE Photo Collection

"Audrey Hepburn's long, slim foot is in perfect proportion to her height. She is a true artist and a true aristocrat. Audrey is always natural and completely unaffected, whether she is acting or buying shoes or handbags. She can talk intelligently and knowledgeably on philosophy, art, astronomy, and the theatre"

Salvatore Ferragamo

"Roman Holiday" With Audrey Hepburn - Gregory Peck (1953) by Alfred EisenstaedtLIFE Photo Collection

Roman Holiday

When William Wyler’s Roman Holiday came out in 1953 it was immediately apparent that a new star had been born. Her name was Audrey Hepburn. She had large dark eyes full of life, mischievous and innocent at the same time, an intimate smile, both tender and spirited, an almost adolescent physique and an elfin way of moving as if she had no body at all.

"Roman Holiday" Movie With Audrey Hepburn + Gregory Peck (1953) by Alfred EisenstaedtLIFE Photo Collection

"Roman Holiday" Movie With Audrey Hepburn + Gregory Peck (1953) by Alfred EisenstaedtLIFE Photo Collection

An icon was born

She represented an altogether new type in American cinema, familiar then with the voluptuous vamp or the dependable girl-next-door. Millions of women throughout the world for decades attempted to imitate her style, her fashion sense, her hair and her make-up, but without success. Audrey Hepburn had proved inimitable. Her fascination has nothing manufactured about it but springs from her unique qualities as a human being, developed throughout a life obviously marked by success but also clouded by sorrows and disappointments.

Academy Awards - Audrey Hepburn (1954) by Ralph MorseLIFE Photo Collection

Audrey Hepburn Wins Best Actress: 1954 Oscars

The international success of Roman Holiday brought her an Oscar and was followed by a series of wonderful films directed by some of the greatest American directors. She was certainly favoured by fame and earned wide public and professional admiration but was perhaps most remarkable for her extraordinary commitment not only to her work and but to a wider world. She retired early from cinema to devote herself to the protection of children in the Third World with remarkable determination and enthusiasm.

Audrey Hepburn (1954-03-26) by Ralph MorseLIFE Photo Collection

Audrey Hepburn and Salvatore Ferragamo

Salvatore Ferragamo was known as 'shoemaker to the stars' and created several shoes for Audrey Hepburn at the start of her career in the 1950s. The shoes are works of the finest craftsmanship, reflecting the supreme technical, practical and imaginative capacity of an artist who was constantly aware of his cultural environment. 

Last: Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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Elegance is the only beauty that never fades".

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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“There is no limit to beauty, no saturation point in design, no end to the material…”

Salvatore Ferragamo

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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"How shall I sum up my life? I think I've been particularly lucky. Does that have something to do with faith also? I know my mother always used to say, 'Good things aren't supposed to just fall in your lap. God is very generous, but he expects you to do your part first.' So you have to make that effort. But at the end of a bad time or a huge effort, I've always had - how shall I say it? - the prize at the end. My whole life shows that."

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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"I decided, very early on, just to accept life unconditionally; I never expected it to do anything special for me, yet I seemed to accomplish far more than I had ever hoped. Most of the time it just happened to me without my ever seeking it."

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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"I never think of myself as an icon. What is in other people's minds is not in my mind. I just do my thing."

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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”Elegance and comfort are not incompatible, and whoever maintains the contrary simply doesn’t know what he’s talking about”.

Salvatore Ferragamo

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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"I love people who make me laugh. I honestly think it's the thing I like most, to laugh. It cures a multitude of ills. It's probably the most important thing in a person."

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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"It's that wonderful old-fashioned idea that others come first and you come second. This was the whole ethic by which I was brought up. Others matter more than you do, so don't fuss, dear; get on with it."

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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"Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, it's at the end of your arm, as you get older, remember you have another hand: The first is to help yourself, the second is to help others."

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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“The size of your feet, too, tells me about your character. I have divided the women who have come to me into three categories: the Cinderella, the Venus and the Aristocrat. [...] Venus is usually of great beauty, glamour, and sophistication, yet under her glittering exterior she is often essentially a home body loving the simple things of life. Because these two characteristics are mutually contradictory the Venus is often misunderstood. People accuse her of too much luxury loving and frivolity.”

Salvatore Ferragamo

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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"Opportunities don't often come along. So, when they do, you have to grab them."

Audrey Hepburn

Shoe for Audrey Hepburn, Salvatore Ferragamo, From the collection of: Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
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"Nothing is impossible, the word itself says ‘I’m possible’!"

Audrey Hepburn

Credits: Story

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サルヴァトーレ フェラガモ博物館
イタリア、フィレンツェ
http://www.ferragamo.com/wps/wcm/connect/019a61cb-29fe-494f-a5a7-27102d76d135/cs_audrey_en.pdf?MOD=AJPERES

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The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
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