That eyewear is a fashion item seems self-evident to those of us who practice the art of optical dispensing for a living. We all know the rare opportunity we have to change not only a person’s look, but also the way the whole world perceives them through a great frame choice. We also know the disappointment we feel each time someone leaves wearing the ‘wrong’ glasses, having not had the courage to make the bold, and better choice.
It is with this evangelical zeal that Maarten Weidema authors his book Amazing Eyewear – The Holy Grail on Eyewear Design. The title, clunkily conveys a deep-seated love of eyewear and, more importantly, independent eyewear design. Our industry has in recent years become caught in the thrall of luxury fashion houses who have used eyewear as an accessible gateway drug to pull more consumers into their orbit. In lieu of bold or innovative design they choose to use their brands’ iconography in miniature to seduce consumers. The result is a mass proliferation of bland and unremarkable eyewear.
The author
Weidema is a Dutch former eyewear designer, now publisher of TEF (The Eyewear Forum) online magazine, who seeks to champion the cause of boutique designers who swim against the tide of bland eyewear by producing unique and innovative eyewear. His book is intended as a coffee table/waiting room publication that can introduce consumers and practitioners alike to the wild and wonderful world of eyewear design.
The book
