1970’S was an amazing decade for eyewear. It was all about freedom and design without limits. The Butterfly, first produced in 1970, was taken from a time when eyewear and design became fluid and free and not at all constrained by the rules of what glasses should be. The time was big and colourful, peaceful in the social sense and loud in the musical one. The Butterfly sunglass is symbolic of this time and was interpreted by a few different companies at the time, Oliver Goldsmith Sunglasses being one of them. It demonstrates how form can be anything and functionality can still prevail.
Think 20th Century icons. Grace Kelly. Peter Sellers. Michael Caine in his signature black spectacles. Audrey Hepburn in the big white glasses that framed her elfin face. Iconic style makers – Givenchy, Dior and Vidal Sassoon. Think cult films of the fifties and sixties – The Ipcress File and Harry Palmer, Charade and Two for the Road. They’ve all got one thing in common. Oliver Goldsmith. In the second half of last century, when it came to eyewear, Oliver Goldsmith was synonymous with stars and style.
About Oliver Goldsmith Sunglasses
Oliver Goldsmith is a British heritage brand with nearly 100 years of experience in eyewear design and innovation. With four generations of knowledge behind us, we continue to make some of the most beautiful eyewear in the world. Eyewear that pushes the boundaries of expectation, self-expression and individuality.
In 1926 Philip Oliver Goldsmith stood at the door of his first mobile showroom presenting his latest designs to the London public. His frames were made mostly from metal, since this was the only material readily available, apart from real tortoiseshell, which was expensive, brittle and difficult to work with. Fuelled by his passion to find new ways to revolutionise the eyewear industry, he came across a local button factory who were using a ground-breaking raw material, coloured plastic.
From Vidal Sassoon to Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly to Michael Caine, Peter Sellers and John Lennon, The Rolling Stones to Princess Diana and more – Goldsmith was meteoric in its appeal, dressing the faces of some of the most famous and iconic names in history.
By the mid 1960’s, Charles’s two sons had joined him in the business and the brand continued its dalliance with the bold and adventurous, creating frames to match the desires of the 70’s disco era. By the 1980’s however, licensing and the early stages of fast fashion were introduced resulting in a short hiatus for the brand.
In 2015, it was now Claire Goldsmith, Philip’s great-granddaughter and the fourth generation Goldsmith’s turn at the helm.
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Passionate about the maintaining the legacy of her forefathers – her promise is to ensure that the collections continue to deliver the prestige of the Goldsmith name. Archival designs are brought back to life alongside new and unique styles, but each frame carries the significance of an unparalleled design heritage.
Read more about this brand on TEF Magazine or visit their website.
Shooting: TEFdoesSILMO
Eyewear: Oliver Goldsmith Sunglasses
Model: Nuria Gomez of La Espejuelos
Photographer: Miguel Mazon Varela
