237 and the concept of identity
1st February 2012 Clean, pared-down sophistication is the central theme of Swedish designer Oscar Magnuson new line, 237, an adventure in acetate where we see only the essentials, pure lines and evocative, transparent colours. In conversation in Munich last month, Magnuson explained how the collection came about during a visit to 237 Eldridge Street Manhattan, New York, the address of Eldridge Optician Galleries, where he has collaborated with gallerist Rodrigo Mallea Lira of Fruit & Flower Deli.
“The 237 collection focuses primarily on optical pieces, produced in high-quality Italian acetate, featuring a new feeling. My idea was to really investigate how simple I can make a frame and still preserve our expression. In the past I have worked with some more elaborate, complex shapes where I have designs making use of different thicknesses. In these 237 styles I wanted to use thinner frames of around 1.8mm, while also preserving the tiny variations or nuances in the expression of the design. Just half a millimetre can make such a difference to how a frame looks on a face. I wanted the frames to be distilled to the minimum making them easy to wear, while resulting in a strong expression but without taking over the face.
Would you say you are using signature colours? ” Generally I like to work with transparencies. I am using purple a lot in different ways. Dark purple for men is something I have explored; a transparent purple doesn’t become as heavy as a solid black, it works very well; it is interesting. I am also using the yellow which for me signals creativity and integrity. I thick I saw an interesting old guy in Paris wearing this specific yellow, it really has an extra edge and it looks creative in a sublime way.”
Can you give us an idea of the direction of men’s frame styling this year? “What has changed in my collection is that we are moving towards smaller, more rounded shapes for men. Two years ago we were doing much wider or squarer shapes. Today I am working on a bit more subtlty and designs that are not quite as wide on a man’s face.
Explain how you are inspired? “I don’t really find inspiration in physical objects. I am inspired by personalities and historical or fictional characters. For example, one of the frames here is based on the Swedish architect, Nils Strinning who designed the String Shelf, a Swedish design classic. He used to wear acetate specs so I have picked up on this and looked at his work in this context. We also have a model named after William Burroughs, which has come really through my connection with the artist and poet Karl Holmqvsit and influences of the beatnik culture.
My background is as an industrial designer. I am into the technical issues of making frames correctly and solving the unique problems in spectacle design, as well as being creative and expressing myself. I am also closely connected to the art world, and in my early career I was involved in sculpture and painting. What I have found is a way to marry my interest in art and concepts and ideas, and the creation of the product.
We started to work with Rodrigo Mallea Lira of Fruit & Flower Deli in New York some years ago and he has become my muse. He has inspired me to look at identity and alter egos in the context I am working in. Our work with him led to the creation of the fictitious optician “Eldridge Optician”, and the character Orlando Marina Young. Today Eldridge Optician has become the umbrella concept for the collaboration between Oscar Magnuson and Fruit & Flower Deli. In the optical world, we use it as the “Optician”, and play with that concept, while in the art world it is an art project representing what Rodrigo is working on.
What connects us with Rodrigo is I have come to like storytelling through the frames, and giving the frames names that are not just names that I picked randomly – they are names that for that time reflect what I am doing or thinking. We believe this gives an extra expression of what our values are. We have turned our product into a story, and something that has a meaning behind it.
Pinpoint your design philosophy? “I believe that whatever product you design, it is the references you put into the object that create the object. As human beings we read every object that we use, depending on our memory and what we see and what we touch.”
Oscar Magnuson spectacles are available at Selima Optique in New York. CN