From Friday 25th to Monday 28th September, the halls of the SILMO Paris exhibition served up imaginative eyewear, bold design work and new strong indicators for key design directions in 2027 – unorthodox “art pieces” and exciting collabs revealed new levels of creativity and innovation at avantgarde eyewear brands
SILMO is a highly anticipated international annual event in the optical calendar, revealing new trends and innovations across multiple product categories in optics. This year the show welcomed over 32,000 visitors and 950 exhibitors, with a total of 1500 brands across two halls at Paris Nord Villepinte.
We were able to spend time on key stands as well as visiting many smaller exhibitors to identify the most wonderful and creative things launching. Multiple, varied trends and interesting micro trends were evident, notably, particular shapes such as the aviator and navigator and a continued proliferation of round and oval frames, and two distinctive moods in colour – one bright and one restrained and neutral, drawing on vintage inspiration. There was evidence of a shift towards influences coming from different eras in history on some of the independent eyewear stands, while other collections expressed personality, bright colour and joie de vivre – continuing the theme of self-expression that has become an essential focus for many designers.
As well as anniversary celebrations and new designs released to mark these special occasions (Rigards was celebrating 15 years and Charmant – with Line Art, 70 years) there were notable releases and special editions created with artists, architects and individuals working in other fields.
The Trends Forum highlighted four directions: ‘Fancy’ – featuring feminine styles with fantasy decorations and multicoloured acetates; ‘Charisma’ representing oversized designs, warm colour palettes and dual-material designs; ‘Adrenaline’ which highlighted the more graphic frames and sports and kid’s designs; and ‘Aura’, with a 1990s theme and a range of thick, bold and oversized designs.
The Silmo d’Or awards evening took place at the elegant Pavillon Dauphine on a warm Saturday evening. Independent eyewear winners for 2026 included ROLF for Superbird, Maison Lune for La Galet, and Caroline Abram for Sakura. The Jury Prize went to Paloceras for the sculptural Pebble RX sunglasses. Above: at FACE A FACE, model SIGN 1 is part of the Marker collection, which transforms the gesture of sketching into an exploration of colour, contrast and creative expression (www.faceaface-paris.com); below: Maison Lune won a Silmo d’Or for the frame, Galet
Among new collections at PORTRAIT on the Parasite stand, we enjoyed seeing a limited edition series of eyewear produced with the Venetian artist, Emiliano Donaggio. Blending eyewear design, sculpture, engineering and Italian craftsmanship, the project challenges conventional frame construction. Its development brought together specialised disciplines and materials rarely combined in a single piece: titanium, stainless steel, silver, Murano glass and artist-worked printed acetate. www.portraiteyewear.com
NINA MÛR presented Freedom, a collection inspired by the Japanese concept Ma, where space is no longer an absence but rather an essential part of the design. Model Sora is the striking round shape in the collection. These frames are made to order from start to finish in Madrid. Find out more at www.ninamur.com
Artistic collaborations were a huge topic again at SILMO. Favourites included the NINA MÛR x OKUDA edition, MYKITA’s pretty edition with the singer Cécile McLorin Salvant, Charmant’s release with the artist Kanako Sasaki for the eyewear company’s 70th anniversary, and the new J.F. Rey x Robertet collaboration: SAKURA, an exclusive collaboration bringing together the art of eyewear design with fine fragrance. The sunglasses were inspired by the fleeting beauty of the cherry blossom, paired with a bespoke signature fragrance, exclusively created by Robertet. Limited to just 350 pieces, SAKURA has a fine metal structure with 3D printed acetate rings. Designed as a wearable piece, the style has category 3 brown gradient polarised lenses, with an inner anti-reflective coating for visual comfort. www.jfrey.fr
Janana is part of the new concept Jellopop at Anne & Valentin, a capsule collection that celebrates pleasure, surprise, desire and indulgence. Inspired by Anglo-American gelatin desserts, food art, chef-driven culinary creations and the exceedingly rare cookbook imagined by Andy Warhol and Suzy Frankfurt, Jellopop transforms the world of dessert into a field of visual experimentation. The frames are characterised by generous volumes, thick lines and rounded reliefs. Exterior bevels catch the light, while layered gradients seem to travel through the material itself. Each frame seems molded from a substance in motion, an almost liquid matter. Find out more at www.anneetvalentin.com
Alpagota launched their new travel product, Vision Twist, at the Paris event. With approximately 120 sprays, the small aluminium case, available in three colourways, has a refillable glass spray inside. The signature aromatic compositions include Sandalwood and Matcha, Eucalyptus and Patchouli and Green Mandarin and Cedarwood. The formula combines anti-static and anti-stain properties to help keep lenses cleaner for up to 30% longer, while a subtle aromatic touch turns an everyday task into a sensorial ritual. www.alpagota.com
The Full list of winners of the Silmo d’Or 2026: Children: Karavan Kids – Zigzag (Design Eyewear Group); Sport: Julbo – Panora; Vision: Mega Optic – EvosightVR; Low Vision: Eschenbach Optik – optaro® XL; Materials / Equipment: Nidek – PHANTOM™; Technological Innovation in Eyewear: Laclarée – Autofocus glasses; Smart Eyewear: GETD & Marienfeld – The Luxury AI glasses; Optical Frames “Labels”: Lancel – Emeline (Grosfilley); Sunglasses “Labels”: Victoria Beckham – VB 7015/S (Safilo); Sunglasses “Eyewear Designer”: Caroline Abram – Sakura; Optical Frames “Eyewear Designer”: Maison Lune – Galet; Sunglasses “Craftsmanship & Know-how”: Brett – Ferdinand Sun; Optical Frames “Craftsmanship & Know-how”: rolf. Eyewear – Superbird; Jury’s Special Prize: Paloceras – Pebble RX.
To find out more about the SILMO d’Or winners this year, visit the SILMO website at https://www.silmoparis.com/en/silmo-awards/silmo-or/laureats
SILMO Paris will take place on 24th to 27th September 2027. The Edition will be a special one as SILMO will celebrate its 60th anniversary. Find out more at www.silmoparis.com