The Vera Wang Eyewear Collection is characterized by a modern take on light, form and structure. Using innovative techniques, all handmade with the highest quality of craftsmanship.
In a recent interview with Vision2020 magazine, Vera Wang discusses life as a designer and reveals her newest role – starring in her eponymous Eyewear campaign for the first time.
Vera Wang has always had a passion for eyewear. “I’m a collector; I probably have over 1,000 pairs of frames. Maybe more,” says the fashion designer. If that surprises you—it shouldn’t. Wang studies eyewear and notices every minute detail, fine-tuning her designs until they exceed her very high standards. She has partnered with Kenmark Eyewear since her initial eyewear collection launched in 2001, and she still somehow manages to keep us on our toes. Twenty years later, the designer adds model to her long resume after starring in her eyewear campaign for the first time.
Wang began her career in the industry at Vogue, becoming one of the magazine’s youngest fashion editors. As an accessories editor for almost 17 years, she worked with and studied eyewear on a daily basis. “It really was not what it became—what it evolved to be. Over the last 50 years eyewear has changed so much,” says Wang.
It is clear that Wang is not just in eyewear for the license. She knows it. She knows all of the players and has designed with some of the best in the industry. She brings her vision and style to life, but still prioritizes technicality and comfort.
What makes eyewear so important to you?
“I always joke, it’s such a little area of the face, but if people understood how much work goes into the width of the temple or the bridge,” says Wang. “Is there a bridge? How do the lenses attach, are they flat, are they curved?” Hinges are also an incredibly important design detail to her technically. “I mean if the hinges aren’t beautifully made and beautifully executed, no matter how good looking the eyewear is, no matter how flattering, no matter how cool, no matter how editorial—they just don’t work. If they don’t stay on your face, they don’t work.”
Mirrors line the tables of her eyewear meetings, and Wang tries on every single frame she designs. “I think it’s one of the most insane accessories,” she says. “It is so creative, so personal. For people to be able to transform themselves and enjoy their own creativity and experiment. I just think it’s such a fun thing.”
She believes eyewear is one of the most significant accessible accessories for both men and women of all ages. “It’s like a new hairdo, a new lipstick, a new eyeshadow. That is the cosmetic creativity of eyewear that I love so much. It changes the shape of your face.”
Wang wants to convey her belief that there are not any limitations in eyewear anymore, and she is amazed by how the industry evolves each season. “It is part of your wardrobe. It’s part of your life,” she says.
“It can be very whimsical, it can be very sophisticated, it can be just plain beautiful and mysterious like Jackie Kennedy was. I feel very lucky to be able to do eyewear, because I think it makes such a contribution creatively.”