Design + Inspiration

‘The lens cleaning cloth re-imagined as a canvas for creative action’

l.a. Eyeworks – whose long-term commitment to the art world has evolved through many years via an exciting legacy of collaborations with visual innovators – artists, illustrators, graphic designers and photographers – has a fresh line-up of art inspiration coming our way shortly. The brand has commissioned Los Angeles-based artists Liz Young and Julian Hoeber, and designer Gere Kavanaugh, an AIGA Medalist to create new designs for their cleaning cloths accompanying all their Spring 2020 eyewear and sunglass styles.

Above: the design by Gere Kavanaugh, a prolific voice in the history of American design, Gere Kavanaugh’s pioneering spirit and talents have touched almost every aspect of the discipline. A unifying thread throughout Kavanaugh’s work is the designer’s passion for colour (“I could eat colour”), bountifully represented in this explosive, fractal composition.

The natural landscapes of California and the colours and textures of endorheic basins of the world have inspired a new mood and colour palette in the C1-20 collection of eyewear.

Inspired by effortless beauty, and the natural formations and colours of endorheic basins – the characteristic of which is usually a saline lake or salt flats, the new releases at SALT. bring together two key characteristics, stylish design with a high-class, lasting finish. The collection, which includes new optical and sunglass shapes, is made in Japan, where producers create the frames according to time-old traditions.

Above: the Hillier sunglasses by SALT. Optics are named after the lake in Middle Island, Archipelago of the Recherche, Western Australia  – a classically chic oval shape fitted with polarized CR39 gradient lens – available at https://saltoptics.com/products/hillier-tt

The smallest details, right down to the pins visible at either side of the front of the frames are distinctive in their quality and finish set flush into the surface of the acetate. Alongside classic tones of black and indigo blue, hues inspired by the colorations of salt flats and lakes include taupe, smoke grey, whiskey and woodgrain.

Model Fuller – available in tones which include black, smoke grey, tortoise grey and woodgrain – is one of the classic 1960s infused shapes in the collection, created in multiple sizes for a wide variety of faces. The thin clean lines of the silhouette – which has a delicate key hole bridge – define the signature timeless aesthetic of SALT. VIew model Fuller at: https://saltoptics.com/products/fuller-50-rx-tg

SALT. Optics optical and sunglass collections are designed in California and made in Japan. The models in Collection 1 2020 are available through selected optical retailers and online at www.saltoptics.com. CN

The Iceland Collection by Oscar Mamooi: seven outstanding new frames with a bold design, original combination of materials and ‘gleaming’ textures which replicate the beauty of ice – each frame is named after a track by Bjork as a homage to the singer.

Irregular shapes, conceived as a reflection of the connection between man and nature characterise new eyewear work by Italian designer Oscar Mamooi – launched this month. The frames replicate the unexpected, unpredictable forms, structures and jagged edges of icebergs and glaciers, contrasted with the smoothness and tactile experience of pieces of ice. Above: model Unison in the Iceland collection

The designer has explored advanced technologies and techniques such as hot pressing, creating ad hoc moulds for every single part of the frame. “These parts are then compressed to create the acetate, giving life to surprising volume effects,” says Mamooi.

Oscar Mamooi is a multi-talented designer/stylist and illustrator. His love for eyewear dates back several years; in 2014 he designed the Celebration Collection, a tribute to Italian journalist and fashionista Anna Piaggi. See the Iceland Collection at www.oscarmamooi.com

For more about Oscar Mamooi visit https://www.eyestylist.com/2014/09/anna-piaggi-fashion-influential/

Angles, edges, corners. An articulated architectural style. Multi-sided, multi-faceted or softly layered. Whatever will work for you this season, we’re noting a choice of dramatic details and design flourishes defined by geometric lines and clean-cut silhouettes.

Above: SOL SOL ITO sunglasses photographed by Nina-Maria Glahé. The frames are made from high-quality acetate with hand-polished surfaces and all elements processed and refined with painstaking care. www.solsolito.com

The new proposition from Mykita and Helmut Lang offers a deconstruction of a wraparound sunshield with several component parts. The HL002 is curvilinear and fluid with a strong angular style for the design of the temple and side – the model is pictured above in white/silver flash sides with silver flash lenses. For more details visit www.mykita.com

Launching this week for the Spring/Summer season the new Essedue range of sunglasses includes hexagonal designs (model 488) and chunky shapes with visible bevelling to create a strong dynamic structured frame design. On-trend colorations include the delicate coral above and some vintage inspired tortoise tones – see more shapes at www.esseduesunglasses.com