Highway Overpass Meets Contemporary Necklace: A New Line of Eyewear Is Born

Ludwig

Contemporary Jewelry:  Sleek, modern, textured, bold, eye-catching, innovative, whimsical.

Road Architecture:  Strong, functional, textured, utilitarian, monochromatic, plain, sometimes ugly.

What do the two have in common?  Look closely.  It’s all about texture.  And  Jacqueline Lung found an incredibly innovative way to bring these two media together.

The Steinar frame is made of steel and real concrete, yet it's light enough to wear.  Photo by Patrick Han.

Lung’s Steinar frame is made of real concrete, yet it’s light enough to wear. Photo by Patrick Han (cargocollective.com/patrickhan).

The Ludwig frame celebrates industrial I-beams as both structure and decor.  Photo by Patrick Han (cargocollective.com/patrickhan).

The Ludwig frame celebrates industrial I-beams as both structure and decor. Photo by Patrick Han.

It all started in Lung’s freshman year at RISD (Rhode Island School of Design), when she fell in love with metalworking, particularly fine details, which add texture to smooth metallic surfaces.  Lung initially worked on jewelry and tableware designs.  And then something strange and wonderful happened:  She discovered eyewear as the nexus of jewelry and function – an accessory that serves a necessity and also conveys the personality of the wearer.  Lung explains:

I believe that … eyewear acts as a symbol of a persona … The relationship between eyewear and its wearer is symbiotic. On one hand the wearer desires the personality of the materials embodied in the eyewear, and on the other hand, the personality of the materials calls for activation by the wearer.

For her RISD Degree Project, Lung took a bold step.  She decided to incorporate boring industrial materials — such as steel, concrete and even duct tape — into her eyewear designs to elevate their status and challenge eyeglass wearers to think about these materials in a new way.  In her handmade line of eyewear, Industrial Spectacles, Lung brings out the hidden beauty in these materials.  Says Lung:

Gunta, 2016. Polycabonate, duct tape

“Shiny, ugly duct tape transforms into a soft, velvety, grey textile. Concrete presents itself as delicate graphic elements, rather than as massive spacious structures in which we reside. Parts of screws that are normally hidden below the surface are displayed, remaining functional while destabilizing the expectation of how they could be used. The hidden character of these materials are given agency as they rise to the surface and become accessible in the format of eyewear.”

Each frame in Lung’s new collection bears a name that reflects its featured material.

Archytas playfully showcases screws as a design element. Photo by Patrick Han

Archytas playfully showcases screws as a design element. Photo by Patrick Han

– Archytas: named after Archytas of Tarentum, an ancient Greek mathematician who is often credited as the inventor of screws

– Steinar: a Scandinavian name that combines “stone” and “warrior, referencing concrete and  its origins

– Ludwig: named after Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, paying homage to his extensive use of I beams in architecture as both structural and decorative elements

Akira blends steel and  duct tape into sleek shape with velvety texture.  Photo by Patrick Han.

Akira blends steel and duct tape into sleek shape with velvety texture. Photo by Patrick Han.

– Akira: named after Akira Yoshizawa, a Japanese origami master, reflecting the foldable structure created by steel and duct tape in this piece

– Gunta: named after Gunta Stölzl, who was a Bauhaus weaving master, in reference to the duct tape weave structure.

Lung’s Archytas spectacles with mirror sun lenses are available at RISD Works store and  at www.jacquelinelung.com
Dare to see yourself – and these materials – differently!

Archytas

Archytas, 2016. Steel

OpticMag, June 2016 Jackie Lung

Special feature in “ОПТИЧЕСКИЙ Magazine” (OPTICmag), Moscow, Russia JUNE 2016 Публикация в журнале “ОПТИЧЕСКИЙ Magazine”, июнь 2016

Don’t be fooled by the name: “Conservatoire International de Lunettes”

Alfredo Salazar, Paris-based Mexico-born photographer  in model 404 by Conservatoire International de Lunettes.

As we introduce New Englanders to an amazing and diverse collection that we discovered on a trip to Europe last month, we thought it appropriate to explain a little about the name Conservatoire International de Lunettes, which playfully juxtaposes truth and a little bit of fantasy.

Further seems forever, by Carlotta Cattaneo, an Italian graphic designer. Interpretation of model 107 for Conservatoire International de Lunettes.

Truth:  It really does involve a conservatory  –  not just one creator, but a whole school of artists, philosophers (yes, philosophers!) and entrepreneurs with brilliant minds and incredible talent.  These frames express their varied cultural backgrounds and professional experiences of their creators. Artists from all over the world came with their diverse style and methods to illustrate their personal vision of Conservatoire glasses. They incorporated Conservatoire in  their art works.

 

To see or not to see by Luca Rossato, an Italian photographer. Model 107 for Conservatoire International de Lunettes.

Truth:  The Conservatoire International de Lunettes collection embraces the classics, like tortoiseshell acetate, and marries it to modern creativity, like transparent layered color inside the frame, or thin metal temples.  The result is classic reinterpreted in a sleek, sophisticated style.

   

 

Fiction:  The name Conservatoire International de Lunettes is French, but the company is Italian, based in Milan, fashion mecca and home of the finest optical acetate products in the world.

Visit us to experience the very best of Italian craftsmanship, design, technology and fashion.

Good Ol’ Summertime — Don’t Forget the Shades

 

Tom Wesselmann, Still Life No. 60, 1973

National Sunglasses Day (June 27) is poised right at the beginning of the beach season for a very important reason:  to remind you that in addition to all the summer-fun essentials like sunscreen, beach towels and your sexy swim suit, you must not forget to procure one or two pairs of good quality sunglasses, which serve dual duty as fashion accessory and essential UV protection.

Fashion Trends

What’s in this summer?  The retro look is really hot.  For her: cat eyes, ovals and the big, square or rounded Jackie O. look.  For him: aviators, round shapes – in plastic, or John Lennon-style metal – and oversized horn rims (think Clark Kent). 

Tortoise continues to please as a classic, but look for interesting variations, such as Havana tortoise, which has yellow tones as the predominant background, or those interesting orangey brown tones reminiscent of the 1960s. 

Bright colors are the hottest new trend –reds, blues and electric greens.  For women, pastels are growing in popularity and they make a nice contrast to your summer bronze.  Two-tone eyewear is a bold new trend, with the front piece in one color and the temples in a contrasting or complementary color. 

 

Functionality

Damage from UV rays affects both the delicate skin around your eyes — causing premature wrinkles (Argh!) – and your retina.  In fact, UV damage is a leading cause of eye diseases, such as macular degeneration, which is irreversible. 

Here’s the secret:  It’s the lens material and not the tint or polarization that provides UV protection.  Cheap plastic doesn’t block 100% of UV rays and tinting makes the situation worse because it causes your pupils to open wider, which lets in more UV light.  Look for polycarbonate, which is 100% UV-blocking, or lenses with a UV block coating, usually identified by a sticker on the lens. 

Antiglare is another important option.  It keeps light from bouncing all around and making you crazy. 

 

So Why Buy Polarized? 

Polarized lenses are like mini blinds.  They block light from entering vertically.  In fact, if you take two pairs of polarized sunglasses and hold them at a 90-degree angle to each other (one vertical and the other horizontal), you’ll see that together they completely block out the light.  If you spend a lot of time around the water, polarization is essential for comfort.

This technology tamps down the reflection of the rays and makes you feel cooler and more comfortable.  But, beware:  40% of reflected light comes at you from behind the lens.  How?  Light bounces up under your shades from reflective surfaces, such as water, sand, sidewalks and even snow.  Your polarized lenses don’t have the ability to block light that doesn’t pass through them, so you still need anti-reflective treatment on the back side of the lens to absorb light rays bouncing up at you from below.

 

The Best Fit

For optimal protection, you need a comfortably snug fit with maximum coverage.  A good trick is to have a friend – or your favorite optician – stand and look at you from the front and the side.  Tilt your head forward so your friend/optician can see the view from above as well as head-on.  If s/he can see your eyes from any angle, so can the sun. 

The temples (earpieces) should ride close to your head, but should not touch your skin until a point just in front of your ear.  This leaves room for your skin to breathe and avoids discomfort when your skin swells slightly from heat and perspiration.