Silmo D'Or 2022

With the upcoming edition of Silmo Paris, the Silmo d’Or awards can not be missed, above all because they celebrate the best of creation and innovation of an entire industry, such as shapes, designs, colors, materials, or know-how. From 1994 until today, the SILMO organizers, always willing and committed to highlight the optical and eyewear sector, have decided to reveal this formidable energy, creating trophies to crown and consecrate the excellence, creation and innovation of manufacturers and brands from all around the world. To create and innovate is to succeed in the challenge of launching something new on a market and it is a formidable source of energy internally because they stimulate know-how and skills within companies. The companies in competition for the 29th edition of Silmo D’Or are many (you can find the complete list at the end of the article), but we have chosen seven of them with their respective frames in competition in the different categories.

Let’s start from the first category Children with Rolf Spectacles. The Austrian brand presents Joey, children bean glasses which are light as a feather, extremely robust, without screws, and perfectly adjustable. The frame is also plant-based, sustainable, and produced at one place with a material that comes from a plant in the Euphorbiaceae family that has proven to be extremely versatile. The glasses hinge, that proved to be the ideal component, can be printed at the same time as the frame using 3D printing technology, which means that each new spectacle can be manufactured in a single operation, limiting the need for external suppliers and leaving a minimal ecological footprint.

For the category Optical frame “Brands & Labels”, De Rigo competes with the frame VPP081 from Philippe Plein, a bold-features style made with an exclusive acetate characterised by marble effects - iconic element of the brand – and large temple with metal gold effect finishing in 3 colour options. In the same category, Emmanuelle Khanh runs with Orphée and unveils also her new logo piece: the iconic EK transforms into a delicate golden touch nestled in the hollow of acetate. The frame, instead, is the new born from the line of the Quotidiens, and has an original diamond shape and design. Designed for the faces of contemporary women, the frame is made in Oyonnax, the heart of the historic French basin and in compliance with traditional eyewear know-how. Orphée comes in six colours, including the vibrant Spritz – a gourmet orange crystal that recalls summer and brightens the eye.

For the category Sunglasses “Brands & Labels”, however, the Italian brand De Rigo exhibits the model SFU624 from Furla, an acetate sunglasses style with bold thicknesses, available in five different elegant and sophisticated colour variants. The broad and square-shaped front piece is rendered recognisable by the golden Arch logo, inserted to the side of the lens profile. The temples feature logo lettering and metal detailing on the temple tips. Face a Face, rather, presents Aalto, an oversized temples sculpted like a tuning fork. The sides are no more than an outline, in which is inserted a sunglass lens which seems magically suspended in air. The precise alignment of the two axes of rotation in space represents an unprecedented technical achievement. The riveted hinges are extended by the gold armcore that is encased in crystal acetate to form a shape that is both structural and graphical. Eventually, Woodys Eyewear - the only Spanish brand nominated for the Silmo d'Or awards - presents its Neon-G, the first glasses created for the metaverse. This is a retro-futuristic inspired limited edition that combines Italian acetate with unique metal details.

Last, but not least, the Eyewear Designer category sees on the one hand VAVA competing with BL0034, a unisex square sunglass, with round-shaped lenses in black matte color. This is a minimalistic model with a super small silhouette, made of bio acetate, eco-friendly and 100% recyclable and unique 6x6mm squared aluminum flex hinge that can fit a great variety of faces due to its generous 145mm width. On the other, Gamine presents Wynwood, a colourful, rich and bold optical frame, designed taking inspiration from Wynwood, the arty district of Miami. It is a unisex, two-tone and chunky frame, with wide temples which are reminiscent of the 90s and a shape which is both retro and futuristic.

Photo on top: Gamine mod. Wynwood

The complete list of the Silmo D'Or 2022 nominees:

CHILDREN
Odette Lunettes avec/with « Cadet 1»
NAONED Eyewear avec/with « Ewenn 026 »
ROLF avec/with «JOEY»
ROUSSILHE avec/with «MISS REBELLE C24 »
URBAND avec/with « Eyelet Metal trend»

SPORT
JACQUES DURAND avec/with « ALTERA® STEALTH »
JULBO avec/with « EDGE »
LENAO avec/with « FALCONRY » RAISED Together
OPAL - DEMETZ avec/with « SMASH »
OUT OF avec/with « Bot with IRID lenses »

VISION
Bausch + Lomb avec/with « Ultra One Day»
RODENSTOCK avec/with « B.I.G. NORM»
SHAMIR avec/with « Shamir Metaform»

LOW VISION
ACCESSOLUTIONS avec/with « ZoomCam Speech – KOBA Vision
VOXIWEB avec « VoxiVision»

OPTICAL FRAME « BRANDS & LABELS »
DE RIGO avec/with « Philipp Plein VPP081»
EMMANUELLE KHANH avec/with « Orphée 255 Spritz »
GROSFILLEY avec/with « CT14188 C01» - CHANTAL THOMASS PARIS
SAFILO avec/with « DB 1103 » - DAVID BECKHAM
SEAPORT ODLM avec/with « CC1075-BLOR » - Carven

SUNGLASSES « BRANDS & LABELS »
ADCL avec /with « CL5108 134 » - Christian Lacroix
DE RIGO avec/with « Furla SFU624 » FURLA
MARCHON avec/with « Curb LNV638S » Lanvin
SAFILO avec/with « MJ 1061/S » - MARC JACOBS
SEAPORT ODLM avec/with « LEORA E658 » - ba&sh

TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION IN EYEWEAR
JULBO avec/ with « FLEX360 »
KUBORAUM avec/ with « H40 GD »
Maison Sébastien Geslin avec / with « Game MAD »
MARCHON avec/ with « ZS23128 »   Zeiss Eyewear
PHIBO EYEWEAR x SO'CLASS avec / with « 1.618 O »

Connected Products
ESSILORLUXOTTICA avec/with « Ray-Ban Stories »
OBE avec/ with « Smartlink »
SKUGGA TECHNOLOGY AB avec / with « SKUGGA TECHNOLOGY »

SUNGLASSES « EYEWEAR DESIGNER »
Design Eyewear Group avec/with « AALTO » - FACE à FACE
MASAHIRO MARUYAMA avec/with « Kintsugi MM-0078 »
SHELTER avec/with « AMALFI »
VAVA Eyewear avec/with « BL0034»
Woodys Eyewear avec/with « NEON-G »

OPTICAL FRAME « EYEWEAR DESIGNER »
ancet + fayolle avec/with « Marcel, modèle M+08   »
GAMINE NYC avec/with « WYNWOOD »
Kirk & Kirk avec /with « Thor in Citrus from the Centiles Collection »
MASAHIRO MARUYAMA avec/with « Kintsugi MM-0072 »
ZENKA VISIO ACCESS avec /with « ORIGINE 1 » CAZO ORIGINE