It is certainly no coincidence that the Victoria and Albert Museum in London recently devoted a major exhibition to the Hallyu phenomenon, calling it precisely “Hallyu! The Korean wave” (up to June 25). A cultural contamination that began with soap operas and then extended to pop music and spread everywhere thanks to the cinema and is acclaimed by the most refined cinephiles. Lately the influencers and testimonials most wooed by big luxury brands are definitely South Koreans. Among these are the stylish members of BTS, one of the most popular K-pop bands ever by generation Z, contended by Dior, Tiffany & Co. and Valentino… The bold and glamorous girls of Blackpink with their original outfits are equally sought after…

The most desired glasses by international rock stars of the likes of Beyoncé and Billie Eilish certainly include the Gentle Monster mode (in the opening photo the Bree model) with its famous partnerships, such as Marine Serre and Moncler. They create transversal and eclectic relationships with other worlds including that of art and fashion to bravely venture into experimental and sometimes even technological territories (as in the case of the partnership with Huawei). Created in Seoul in 2011 and stemming from the intuition of Hankook Kim, Gentle Monster conquers for its avant-garde design and absolute uniqueness. Indeed, the new models of the Bold collection inspired by an attempt in 1966 by the art project “9 Evenings: Theatre and Engineering”, designed to erase the boundaries between art and science, are unique. The galaxy's stars incorporated into the products thus become a metaphor for the brand's visionary boldness.

The new P10 Capsule collection by Projekt Produkt is instead entitled “Face the Shade”. The starting point is the evanescent texture of light and shadow that makes up the fabric of a city, where impalpable iridescent colours and reflections of the sun intertwine, continuously influencing the view and vision. This translates into models with a sporty allure such as the wrap-around mod. FSCC1 in acetate with a single lens or mod. FSCC2 with metal profiles, while in mod. FSCC3 the gentle nuances of the acetate are juxtaposed to bold and sculpted volumes. There are those who look to the future and those to the past, like Accrue. With the vintage-inspired NOS collection it reinterprets original vintage models purchased by the brand around the world, thus recovering not only a timeless aesthetic but also transmitting a strong product culture and the timeless values of heritage, quality and attention to detail. Mod. NOS-2 is inspired by American Style Wellington glasses behind which there is an intriguing story: it seems that in the 1960s they were distributed to prison inmates in the US.

There is a classic ale also behind Frank Custom, which for its Legacy premium series features thin lines evocative of Wun (cloud), one of the ten Korean symbols of longevity, on delicate, essential and precious optical frames in B-Titanium, thus establishing a close bond with its origins. And turning a pair of glasses into a real talisman. Indissoluble bonds even when you live elsewhere, far away from your homeland. The story of Diego Kim, founder of the Albert I'm Stein brand, is emblematic. After staying in Poland after moving there for work, for his collections he kept on also drawing inspiration from his homeland, South Korea, with irony and irreverence. He constantly drew creative energy from within, casually mixing Western and oriental influences. Without nostalgia but with a great desire to amaze, just in perfect line with the extremely contemporary concept of Hallyu.