Creative spirits

Tom Herrington

May 1st 2012

RockOptika

1st May 2012 On Thursday I visited Hastings, not so far from home, and a place that is full of surprises, from great food to vintage stores to art… I was visiting designer Tom Herrington at his optical shop by the sea! I love this little place and before I knew that it was Tom’s shop, the vintage vespa in the window had already caught my eye…

Tom greets me in ’60s French beret, black polo neck and his oversized Antibes sunglasses. First we take a look around the store which stocks collections you might not expect to find down here out of London, from Oliver Goldsmith to Kirk Originals, and people travel to find him…he loves to break the mould in his choices which is always refreshing.

A similar uniqueness is there at the heart of his own label, RockOptika, which he launched in Paris last September, after 15 years working with other independent eyewear labels in London. The present collection includes 10 very classy designs, 5 for girls and 5 for guys, including punk tortoiseshells (so cool!) and a favourite for me, a small round shape that fits beautifully on my narrow face. I also love the elegant and distinctive French lace.

Tom explains: “My frames are very nicely put together, produced in Italian acetate, and made in one of the traditional workshops in the Jura region of France. I go out there to see them being made, to check on every detail, from the width of the bridge to the final finish. The collection is strong on design, and I work for hours sketching from my imagination….I like the inspiration I get from the 1960s, sci-fi..I wanted strong retro but with a really modern feel. I use a lot of architectural angles which means the frames are quite flat, I think that’s interesting. ”

LOFT Santa Monica Show October 16th and 17th

MIDO 6-8 February 2027. Welcome to Eyewearland

antibeslace-1 — Antibes in lace by RockOptika

And the colours? “Well with very strong angles and very strong shapes, I have used classic colours…and that’s where I am trying to carve my niche. I like bordeaux and olive for guys who tend to be quite conservative in their colour choices. And I enjoy tortoisehell which is everywhere, but I think it works and has a lovely classic look, it is so stylish.

Do you follow trends? “There is a fine balance between following trends and doing something that is interesting. So I have classic tortoiseshell but I have added a punk tortoise; and I’ve used lace because it is trendy, but I’ve not used a predictable lace, it’s this incredible blue and gold, it’s wicked. In eyewear, you have to keep an eye on fashion because it drives the industry forward, but I like to do this with my own take on it.”

Asked to comment on what is coming up for next season, Tom tells me about his plans for a new campaign, some very special limited materials he has put away in preparation for the collection, and he alludes to some unique colour combinations…I am hoping for a preview myself in September!

RockOptika sunglasses and spectacles are available at Wolf & Badger, Notting Hill, London (www.wolfandbadger.com), McClintock, Covent Garden, London (www.mcclintock-eyewear.co.uk) and The Optical Lounge, Hastings. CN www.rockoptika.co.uk

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Anna-Karin Karlsson

April 1st 2012

Swedish Style Setter and Romanticist

1st April 2012 She radiates the Swedish image – tall, blond, beautiful and talented. Anna-Karin Karlsson is a relative newcomer on the eyewear scene, and in a short period of time, her amazing frames have received international acclaim. We meet at Tranoï, where Anna-Karin is presenting her collection, and she graciously shares her approach to eyewear. “My designs are inspired by beauty and love. My sister will always be an influence on my work, but for my next collection, my great-great grandmother’s art will be part of the designs. The women in my family were real pioneers, and it’s important for me to carry on with that philosophy. I like things graphic and strong – I need to make a story, and it has to have meaning. People want things with a heart – with thought and depth – and I want my designs to live a beautiful, romantic life.

KITTEN NOIR black red leopard 2 — Feline Fantasy - Kitten Noir by Anna-Karin Karlsson

“I know this sounds bizarre, but I’ve actually slept with my acetates, so I can get the feel of them. I don’t like to feel limited, so I dream about what I will do. I work at the pace of five people, and I don’t look at other people’s designs. I have many new ideas, but they are not yet formulated.” When Anna-Karin’s frames arrived at Les Plus Belles Lunettes in Paris, they sold out in a week. Milan, Beverly Hills, and London are also among the stock lists. Music stars love her frames, and Anna-Karin says: “I love the spirit of those girls – girls with dancing hearts. I strive to find beauty, and let it be, let it be. I don’t do trends for people who are scared or don’t know better. I want the designs to live for a long time, not to be disposable, and to make dreams come true!” www.annakarinkarlsson.com JG

Creative spirits

Francis Klein, Paris, France

March 1st 2012

Eyewear Design is a Family Affair

1st March 2012 “We are known for colour, and love experimenting with colour, cat eye shapes, and mostly feminine designs,” says Dixie Klein, daughter of Francis Klein, the Parisian creator with an international clientele. “My father was twenty-two years old when he opened his shop in the 1970’s, and he was disappointed with the frame choices, so he decided to create his own designs. We’ve always been a family business – my mother and my sister Betty are involved too. I remember being about ten years old, and Betty and I were helping to tint lenses in our garage! From the very beginning, our concept has always been that frames are a fashion accessory. We used to have fashion shows at Galeries Lafayette – the Parisian department store.”

Francis Kleinphoto carte — Creative colouration and design from Francis Klein

In 2002, the Klein’s moved the boutique location in the smart 7th arrondissement, to an even more historical part of Paris – the heart of St. Germain de Pres, just steps away from Aux Café Deux Magots, the favourite haunt of literary luminaries Simone de Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Satre. On display in the boutique is a vast selection of their styles – past and present. Francis Klein glasses always provide an element of surprise – it could be an unexpected colour combination, an innovative touch in the frame shape, a particularly distinctive accent. They perform magic with acetate – they make all their own acetate, and the frames are handmade in France – truly a 100% French product. “We are inspired by everything, says Dixie, “certainly our travels, but particularly the 1970’s; we are loyal to our image. We are also passionate about everything we do, and not only the family, but our staff is involved in submitting design ideas – we have a good team.” www.francisklein.com JG

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Oscar Magnuson

February 1st 2012

237 and the concept of identity

1st February 2012 Clean, pared-down sophistication is the central theme of Swedish designer Oscar Magnuson new line, 237, an adventure in acetate where we see only the essentials, pure lines and evocative, transparent colours. In conversation in Munich last month, Magnuson explained how the collection came about during a visit to 237 Eldridge Street Manhattan, New York, the address of Eldridge Optician Galleries, where he has collaborated with gallerist Rodrigo Mallea Lira of Fruit & Flower Deli.

OM_optic_low — Colour for men, 237 collection

“The 237 collection focuses primarily on optical pieces, produced in high-quality Italian acetate, featuring a new feeling. My idea was to really investigate how simple I can make a frame and still preserve our expression. In the past I have worked with some more elaborate, complex shapes where I have designs making use of different thicknesses. In these 237 styles I wanted to use thinner frames of around 1.8mm, while also preserving the tiny variations or nuances in the expression of the design. Just half a millimetre can make such a difference to how a frame looks on a face. I wanted the frames to be distilled to the minimum making them easy to wear, while resulting in a strong expression but without taking over the face.

Would you say you are using signature colours? ” Generally I like to work with transparencies. I am using purple a lot in different ways. Dark purple for men is something I have explored; a transparent purple doesn’t become as heavy as a solid black, it works very well; it is interesting. I am also using the yellow which for me signals creativity and integrity. I thick I saw an interesting old guy in Paris wearing this specific yellow, it really has an extra edge and it looks creative in a sublime way.”

Can you give us an idea of the direction of men’s frame styling this year? “What has changed in my collection is that we are moving towards smaller, more rounded shapes for men. Two years ago we were doing much wider or squarer shapes. Today I am working on a bit more subtlty and designs that are not quite as wide on a man’s face.

Explain how you are inspired? “I don’t really find inspiration in physical objects. I am inspired by personalities and historical or fictional characters. For example, one of the frames here is based on the Swedish architect, Nils Strinning who designed the String Shelf, a Swedish design classic. He used to wear acetate specs so I have picked up on this and looked at his work in this context. We also have a model named after William Burroughs, which has come really through my connection with the artist and poet Karl Holmqvsit and influences of the beatnik culture.

My background is as an industrial designer. I am into the technical issues of making frames correctly and solving the unique problems in spectacle design, as well as being creative and expressing myself. I am also closely connected to the art world, and in my early career I was involved in sculpture and painting. What I have found is a way to marry my interest in art and concepts and ideas, and the creation of the product.

We started to work with Rodrigo Mallea Lira of Fruit & Flower Deli in New York some years ago and he has become my muse. He has inspired me to look at identity and alter egos in the context I am working in. Our work with him led to the creation of the fictitious optician “Eldridge Optician”, and the character Orlando Marina Young. Today Eldridge Optician has become the umbrella concept for the collaboration between Oscar Magnuson and Fruit & Flower Deli. In the optical world, we use it as the “Optician”, and play with that concept, while in the art world it is an art project representing what Rodrigo is working on.

What connects us with Rodrigo is I have come to like storytelling through the frames, and giving the frames names that are not just names that I picked randomly – they are names that for that time reflect what I am doing or thinking. We believe this gives an extra expression of what our values are. We have turned our product into a story, and something that has a meaning behind it.

Pinpoint your design philosophy? “I believe that whatever product you design, it is the references you put into the object that create the object. As human beings we read every object that we use, depending on our memory and what we see and what we touch.”

Oscar Magnuson spectacles are available at Selima Optique in New York. CN

www.oscarmagnuson.com

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Face à Face Paris

January 1st 2012

Architectural Influences by Pascal Jaulent

1st January 2012 A timid winter sun is attempting to flow into the large windows that surround the spacious offices of Face à Face in Paris, where I meet Pascal Jaulent, President and Art Director. He greets me with a warm smile, much brighter than the reluctant winter sun. Jaulent is one of the founders who created Face à Face Eyewear in 1995 (Nadine Roth is Vice President and Marketing Director; designer Alyson Magee left to create her own company.) “What is so interesting about the past fifteen years, is the way that business has evolved. France, America and Canada are our most important markets, then Germany, and Great Britain, which is surprisingly close to the French outlook. Then there is Austria, with its tradition of frame manufacturing, and it has curiosity and enthusiasm – very different than the German market. They speak the same language, but it is a different culture. What is fascinating are the developing markets – Brazil, China, Russia.

“I have a financial background, and it has morphed into design, although I have always loved architecture. That is something that I shared with Alyson Magee. The basic principle of Face à Face has always been architecture, and now we also combine fashion with shapes and colours – it is very artful. When designing frames, it is important to pay attention to design, but also fashion trends. Frames are a personal object or accessory that has to be connected to fashion trends.

Face a face_Senso1_col2015 — Senso by Face à Face

“Fashion moves quite rapidly and we have to adapt. We see a big difference in the acceptance of frames – people want more exclusive, artful designs. My work now is concentrated on the eyebrows as sculptures. I want to create bold and different. It’s a way to express and communicate the collection, and to stay avant garde. Women, especially, want to be à la mode, and up to date. My ideas come from everywhere. Sometimes I see a piece of furniture, like the Dali Sofa, which was the inspiration for the “Lips” sunglasses.”

Jaulent’s latest collection includes sunglasses in acetate and elegant fabrics, including silk and cotton. The Royal Stewart Collection, featuring the signature tartan of the House of Stewart, is a throwback to the 1970’s. “Tartan has rich decorative elements: it’s not new, but it’s timeless. We’ve had lots of global interest in this collection. I would also like to work in rubber and concrete (materials that relate to Jaulent’s inherent love of architecture) and use unexpected materials. I like to play with light, and use metallic inserts. Nature inspires me – leaves and petals.

Face a Face_Calas2_col222 — Calas by Face à Face

“There are many more collections now than a few years ago. Frames are a personal expression, and the attention that people are paying to frames is a growing, positive trend. I want customers to say ‘this is beautiful, and my eyes smile’. I like to make people look beautiful in their glasses.” www.faceaface-paris.com JG

Tymeo by Face à Face