At the Culture Makers Event in Beverly Hills, Sofía Vergara commanded the room in a navy Bardot dress and a familiar companion: the Alexandre Birman Clarita platform sandal. The choice was more than a style preference - it was a nod to a lineage of elevated footwear that has long signaled authority and allure. Platforms, dating back to ancient Greek kothorni and the 16th-century Venetian chopines, were originally designed to lift wearers above the mud - and later, above social station. By the 1930s, Salvatore Ferragamo revived the silhouette for Hollywood starlets seeking both height and stability. Birman, a Brazilian house founded in 2008, continues this tradition with the Clarita's 120mm block heel and signature bow, a detail that echoes the delicate ornamentation of 1950s boudoir slippers. Vergara's preference for sky-high heels - shared by her "Modern Family" character Gloria - reflects a deeper cultural script: the heel as a tool of transformation and visibility. At an event co-founded by Jessica Alba and Tracy Brennan to amplify Latino voices in entertainment, Vergara's footwear choice subtly underscored the message. Platforms have always been about rising - whether from the ground or within an industry. In navy metallic leather, the Clarita sandal is both a historical artifact and a contemporary statement, proving that the lift is as much about presence as it is about posture.
Originally reported by WWD