Design + Inspiration

The popular annual eyewear fair Hall of Frames (Zurich, Switzerland) has issued imagery from its new season shoot which took place on site at Papiersaal over a sunny weekend in September. The frames featured include a mix of advanced materials, from  lightweight titanium to 3d printed designs, with state-of-the-art details, classically inspired shapes and interesting finishes and treatments. Above: Ørgreen Optics Coeda 964, produced in 100% pure titanium and beta-titanium. www.orgreenoptics.com Photography by Nina-Maria Glahé

Dieter Funk’s acetate frames, produced in Bavaria, Germany, lean toward classic or timeless design principles, with modern updates taking the form of special colorations and material/tonal combinations. For more details: www.funkbrillen.com

The Endlos series by Gmerna-based company Coblens combines titanium temples with modern rimless fronts; the frame front and sides are attached to the lenses with small antique inspired screws with a hexagonal shape. www.coblens.com

Quantum spectacles have an outstanding spherical hinge design and light construction in 3D printed polyamide. The innovative choice of subtle and bright colours is one of many highlights of the Danish brand’s eyewear expertise. www.orgreenoptics.com / Photography by Nina-Maria Glahé for Hall of Frames: https://www.ninamariaglahe.com/All rights reserved.

The next edition of Hall of Frames will take place on 13th and 14th September 2020. For more details, visit www.hallofframes.ch CN

Creative energies are running particularly high at theo this year, in preparation for 2020. SILMO saw an ingenious spread of collections, among them a fresh collaborative series – the third of its kind for theo – with designer Matali Crasset. ‘Dialogues’ explores conversation and chat, with focus on the two eyewear basics – the lens and whatever goes around it; how the two interact together or relate beyond the classic ‘glasses’ form becomes a feature and a “talking point” – without constraint in the construction or the technical finesse (of course!). Above: Model Debate, in fluo pink, by theo X Matali Crasset

Expressive, comfortable, surprisingly easy to wear. The result is six titanium styles with Crasset’s “signature” which bring a unique focus to the eyes of the wearer. Single colours emphasise the drama of the openwork and “floating effects”, exploring a bold vision, in theo style – with exquisite tones of fluo pink and orange through to sophisticated monochrome black or white – the two colours that Crasset wears herself.

Dialogues by theo X Matali Crasset was launched in Paris in September 2019; the frames will shortly become available in theo opticians worldwide. The collaborators have simultaneously launched ‘Blurred’, an even more ‘rebellious’ limited edition related to the Dialogues designs and created solely in black and white.

Matali Crasset is an industrial designer from France.  She has become known for a refusal of pure shape in her work and develops new typologies articulated around principles such as modularity, appropriation, and flexibility. She has worked on far-reaching projects in different disciplines and with leading brands including Alessi, Nodus and Le Buisson. For more information visit www.theo.be / www.matalicrasset.com CN

Silmo is a key event in the optical fair calendar where we discover innovations, new directions and trends in eyewear for the season ahead. This year, the breadth of creative proposals was significant, and attendance by independent labels showed a strong movement toward individual design, high level production and experimental work and expertise in colour, materials and eco-oriented design.

At Silmo, Tavat Eyewear showed their new avant-garde SpamCan Collection, the next step on from SoupCan, inspired by the quadratical shape of the iconic spam can or tin. Made from an impressive material composed of bronze, zinc and nickel, this new departure is highly technical and elaborate, with 27 components and a hinge based on the high-precision Swiss watch crown mechanism. The sunglasses are fitted with melanin sunglass lenses. Find out more at www.tavat-eyewear.com

You Mawo’s showpieces at Silmo included the Metamorphosis 3D printed Limited series and a visor design (above) with futuristic 3D side pieces. The main line has also expanded with some strong fashion shapes (cateye model Lyra) and a beautiful round design called Selene. www.youmawo.com

Monoqool launched the SUSTAIN sunglasses, a first 3d printed design made from castor beans farmed sustainably in India through the Pragati Initiative (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHe1N43IN8o ). The company has entered the Sustain programme supported by the AM-Hub organisation in Denmark with the goal of helping a selected number of small/medium size Danish companies to develop sustainable manufacturing via 3D print technology. www.monoqool.com

Kirk & Kirk have done much to promote the benefits of colourful eyewear proposals from the UK, and continue to put out glorious colorations, in both their Centena and Kaleidscope collections, with emphasis on new tones of blue, pink and mauve. www.kirkandkirk.com

The Skyline collection at ROLF Spectacles is exceptional in its avantgarde designs in 3D printed titanium. The new styles have stunning combinations of smooth and textured ‘volcanic-like’ surfaces as well as offering a lightweight, easy-to-wear eyewear solution – putting this line in a category of its own. Image above: Photographer: Clemens Ascher http://www.clemensascher.com and clothes by Mühlmann https://www.muehlmann.eu  For more information about ROLF, visit www.rolfspectacles.com

New brands were plentiful at Silmo, the best ones focusing on advanced technology and technical know-how. VAERK Copenhagen puts the emphasis on beautiful engineering, tech and Danish design traditions. In collaboration with the renowned Danish industrial design duo Harrit-Sørensen, this brand has developed an innovative hinge concept that not only constitutes high level precision but also an aesthetically appealing link between the frame front and temple. www.vaerkcopenhagen.com

In a completely different departure for street style aficionados, London-based designer and creative director Marcello Martino launched Covrt Project in the “start-up” area of the Silmo fair. This bold Italian made collection includes 7 sunglass styles with advanced tech features focused on enhanced comfort, durability and individual design. The collection is accompanied by unique accessories: find out more at  https://covrtproject.com.