Eyestylist

Eye Boutique, Dubai Mall

25th November 2016

Dubai’s impressive luxury eyewear store – EYE BOUTIQUE – is a haven for the eyewear enthusiast, offering a mix of some of the world’s greatest luxury design labels and experimental designs, an exceptional and comprehensive vision care service, and a staggeringly impressive choice of vintage frames.

Part of the historical Hassan’s Optician Company in Kuwait, the first optician store officially approved by the Kuwaiti Department of Health in 1960, the innovative world-class EYE BOUTIQUE was founded by Sanaz Saadat, the wife of Dr Kian Saadat, the son of the founder and current CEO of Hassan’s Optician Co., Dr Hassan Saadat Yazdi.

The success of the EYE BOUTIQUE in Kuwait and Dubai is such that expansion plans are underway to open two additional stores in the UAE.

Unique design from ic! berlin — Unique “collectible” design from ic! berlin

Today, the boutique in the Dubai Mall which EYESTYLIST visited in October 2016, has a comprehensive selection of luxury and experimental frames. They include some of the finest designs by leading innovators Anna-Karin Karlsson, LGR, Linda Farrow, Gentle Monster, Oliver Goldsmith and LINDBERG, as well as ic! berlin – some of their rare pieces such as Splash! dating back to 2012 and their more recent collectible “glasses display” (pictured above).

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Luxury Limited Editions and vintage eyewear at Eye Boutique

The vintage collection is unprecedented and comes from Hassan’s Kuwait archives. Key early pieces from brands like Persol are available, as are labels such as the Italian classic Casanova by TAXI, Paloma Picasso, DIOR and Cazal.

Dubai Mall, Ground Level, Dubai and 360 Shopping Mall, Sixth Ring Road, Kuwait. New stores coming soon! For more details visit www.eyeboutiqueme.com CN

Design + Inspiration

FLEYE: Inspirational, imaginative, iconic!

22nd November 2016

FLEYE has launched their stunning new campaign for 2016/2017 that celebrates the Danish label with pure aesthetics and timeless simplicity. The extraordinary natural beauty of the La Muralla Roja location – which means “The Red Wall” – not only captures Nature’s ageless landscape – but clearly captivates the new designs and artistic direction of FLEYE’s imaginative collection. Photographer Silvia Conde embraces the amazing lighting and moods of La Muralla Roja – rising from the rocky cliffs of Calpe, nestled in the Alicante region of Spain. This tranquil setting is the ideal canvas to introduce FLEYE’s elegant frame silhouettes that effectively combine a triad of nature, inspiration and creative design.

In the top image (left to right) the Dorius frame unites a unique material mix of carbon and wood in a stylish creation with a distinctive appearance. Kani reinvents the aviator with a chic brow bar in high-density acetate for a slim, lightweight and minimalistic look. A frame with immense character is Emmet, constructed with 23 layers of paper-thin carbon fibre and a slim wood layer. With timeless sophistication and an edgy note, the angular shape of Arden is a trio of beta-titanium, carbon fibre and wood.

Dicte is a luxuriously crafted beta-titanium design for women in smooth matt black, and a special touch with green marble acetate end-tips, plus a slightly curved top that accentuates the eyebrows. FLEYE designs are adventurous, innovative, ultra-light, comfortable, well-fitted and graciously refined. More beautiful discoveries at www.fleye.dk JG

Reviews

Style 609 Pollipo’

21st November 2016

Paola Costantini’s Roman heritage underlies her achievement for exquisite craftsmanship, and embodiment of expressive colours. Her latest designs include elegant style 609 in brushed beige cubanite – with colour and texture midway between leather and fabric, played on neutral tones. The contemporary cat eye silhouette highlights the sophistication and refinement of the design. Natural Tuscan leather in brilliant orange with a saffiano finish is the ideal way to store and protect your glasses. Discover more of Polippo’s chic eyewear at www.pollipocchiali.it JG

Design + Inspiration

New innovators: Falvin Eyewear

18th November 2016

Intriguing design by a former jewellery designer, Birgitte Falvin’s new collection for 2017 is presented in exceptional imagery with Danish model Anna Edelfors.

The campaign includes the new Skycrystal Shades (part of the Black Crystal Collection for 2017) in lightweight titanium, a bold, luxurious concept that highlights the designer’s ingenious approach to eyewear. The beautiful, minimal titanium frame, pictured (below) with an elegant architectural shape, typical of Birgitte’s unique style, is complemented by lenses which add to the overall aesthetic: clever facet-cut details along the top edge, and, in some designs, cut-outs in the lenses – precision cut using an old-fashioned artisan technique only achievable by hand. The matte black surface is complemented by exquisite detailing in 24-carat gold.

Falvin Eyewear’s choice of luxury materials – including Japanese titanium, diamonds, 24 carat gold and platinum – is very carefully approached. While comfort and ease of wear is well considered, the clean yet paired-back aesthetics and attention to detail are typical of a strong Danish design ethos which has an immediate draw for the wearer.

Skycrystal by Falvin Eyewear, with facet-cut lenses

Colours are harmonious and natural, selected to work seamlessly with clothing and skin tones, for men and women. “The palette is inspired by colours meeting the surface of the Royal Black Diamond Library,” explains the designer, “when the sunlight plays on it, creating special effects.”

The Black Crystal Collection includes 10 different shapes, which can be customised with diamonds and/or sun lenses. A choice of surfaces in rose gold, palladium and 24 carat gold are proposed in combination with a colour palette of black, brown, grey, blue, aubergine, or white. The customised handcrafted diamond setting is made with black, champagne, and white/transparent Wesselton diamonds. For more information, visit www.falvineyewear.com CN

Arts + travel

Luc Tuymans: Glasses…National Portrait Gallery

16th November 2016

Art frequently influences eyewear, and frames can be an inspiration for art. Belgian artist Luc Tuymans paints a range of subject matter from major historical events to the everyday. His latest work is the phenomenon of spectacles as his muse. As he says:”I have always enjoyed painting glasses. glasses bring a kind of distortion to the face…it is a strange instrument and practically a universal theme. The banality of glasses receives a different meaning when you paint them. When at a certain point I was looking through all the portraits I’ve painted up to now, I was amazed to discover that there were glasses in three quarters of them. This is certainly not a conscious choice…glasses radically change the physiognomy of a face, but are not perceived as a radical change.” Top image: Portrait by Luc Tuymans, 2000; Private Collection; Courtesy David Zwirner, New York/London

Portrait Old Man by Luc Tuymans, 2000; Private Collection Antwerp

A larger exhibition of Tuymans work is concurrently on view at the Museum aan de Stroom in Antwerp. The artist is widely regarded as one of the most significant and influential contemporary painters working today. His work deals with how history and memory is translated into paint, and how we perceive people and things. The exhibition continues through 2 April 2017. www.npg.org.uk JG

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