I’ve been down this path of worship before but it bears repeating especially in light of this month’s feature on the multiple design aspects of frames.

Forever I’ve been obsessed with becoming an automobile designer be it actual Detroit iron, wildy radical hot rods and/or winning motorsport racers. I drew all variations of cars endlessly, EVERYWHERE. On my textbooks. In countless notepads. Via posters in my room. EVERYWHERE. I constantly chattered about this dream. I sent Ford’s Lee Iacocca a letter asking about the potential. (He sent me a note, discouraging me along with a book on the new Mustang.) Three of the cars I’ve owned, my MGB GT, my TVR and my ’62 T-Bird, were bought specifically because they looked similar to the self-penned autos of my daydreaming. And my life will not be complete until I possess a chopped ’32 deuce coupe in deep navy with an autumn leaf interior. Until such time I’m blessed with a daily opportunity observing the workings of the genius entailed when it comes to designing eyewear, pushing the creative envelop in a relatively small product with very specific and intensely demanding parameters.

Take for instance Patty Perreira, framing this month’s cover with a new style from Barton Perreira’s Allied Metal Works. With a proprietary hinge and the simply deft melding of zyl with metal, this eyewear at once defies and defines simplicity. WANT.

And then there’s Blake Kuwahara featured in both his guises in the past two 20/20s with his own collection with its trendsetting frame-in-a-frame concept and his proudly American initiative for STATE Optical. Consider Nicolas Roseillier and the wonders he does in collaboration with John Varvatos for Rem, and ditto David Duralde as he guides the designer collections of Vera Wang and Zac Posen for Kenmark. What better tradition of artistic heritage can there be than Thomas Lafont and his path as destined by his mother Madam Lafont. And this gallery of creativity is further amplified by the key edCFDA artists of the frame recently hosted by 20/20 at Vision Expo East.

I haven’t even scratched the surface here. And all of this face-art happens within the confines of a third of the front and two slim sides of a face. I wonder how amazing it might be if these creatives put their talent toward apparel, watches, other accessories and perhaps… automobiles.

My auto design heros and hot rod master-crafters need to make room since my hall of design has a special gallery for those gifted with the artistic finesse involved creating a SPECtacle. MAY we dedicate this issue to all of you.

James J. Spina
Editor-in-Chief
[email protected]