Bernardo Sandals

Bernardo Sandals was founded in 1946 by architect Bernard Rudofsky and Berta Rudofsky. The Rudofskys went into sandal design following the 1944 exhibition, "Are Clothes Modern?" that Mr. Rudofsky curated at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. The core ideas of the designs were those Bertha taught at Black Mountain College. Monika Platzer writes, in the book Lessons from Bernard Rudofsky, "In contrast to closed footwear, which he condemned as "foot-deformers," Rudofsky preached the virtues of sandals as "non-concealing footwear; they represented a suitable type of shoe, one that transcended conventionality and ever-changing fashions."

The first collection was presented at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Manhattan, and featured only 6 designs. All six designs consisted of strappy uppers on an asymmetrical leather sole that was pancake flat. The collection was immediately successful, and in the 1950s and 1960s high-end fashion magazines such as Vogue and Harper's Bazaar regularly featured Bernardo sandals in fashion editorials. By the 1960s Jackie Kennedy was said to own 16 colors of the same pair. The current Bernardo sandal line includes several of Rudofsky's original designs and are handmade in both Italy and Brazil.

In 1953, Dino Sonnino bought Bernardo Sandals from Aldo Bruzzichelli, the co-founder (with Bernard Rudofsky) and owner of Bernardo Sandals. Rudofsky remained as designer of Bernardo Sandals for one more year, then returned to Italy to pursue his profession as architect. His time with Bernardo was always intended as temporary, until such time that the war-devastated Italian economy would start recovering and provide work for architects. Upon Rudofsky's departure to Italy, Dino Sonnino needed a new designer for Bernardo Sandals, at the time a tiny business with a small factory in New York City, on Walker Street in Tribeca. There were only four employees, with all production made at the Walker Street factory (the building still exists, having become residential with loft apartments). Dino Sonnino's wife, Eva Sonnino, who grew up in Milan, Italy and had a strong sense of fashion, became the temporary designer, until a new designer was found. But Eva Sonnino immediately proved herself to be a successful designer for Bernardo Sandals, and the job was hers permanently.

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Wikipedia