Tapping into the next generation of visionaries, SILHOUETTE celebrates Titan Minimal Art’s 25th anniversary by bringing it to the runway. Students from Polimoda, the Fashion School of Florence, were tasked with reinterpreting frames through an avant-garde approach in harmony with the brand’s DNA. The young designers began with the almost weightless Titan Minimal Art styles and were told to create a natural evolution of the rimless models, without hinges or screws.

After an in-depth journey into the art of creating eyewear, three students from the fourth year of the Undergraduate Course in Fashion Design—Ian Morris McDonald, Luca Polonio and Gabriela Marie Blake brought their visions to life at the Polimoda Graduation Show held earlier this summer in Florence, Italy at Villa Palmieri. The reinterperated Silhouette pieces hit the runway, along with the young designers’ collections with a focus on future fashion. Roland Keplinger, Silhouette’s design director, offered the students support in rethinking the Titan Minimal Art collection in the mood of their final project.

“I studied the shapes of vintage cycling glasses, then compared them to modern ones,” notes Ian Morris McDonald (U.S.). “My goal was to combine the different characteristics of both. I opted for a minimalistic but sharp shape, combining ideas from the past and present and also being influenced by the patterns and iconic styles of Silhouette eyewear that perfectly reflected my inspiration.”

Luca Polonio (Brazil) shares his take: “My goal was to create sculptural garments with unique forms. Combining this idea with Gothic architecture, I was mainly inspired by church ceilings in creating the shape of the sunglasses. I wanted to start from the iconography of aviator glasses, playing with the two bridges and finding a way to connect them with the rectangular shapes inspired by the cuts in Gothic ceilings.”

“I transformed swimming goggles into a wearable accessory, keeping the irony that characterizes my collections and focusing on the Silhouette approach,” says Gabriela Marie Blake (Ecuador). “I took advantage of the simplicity of the lenses to create the illusion of a frame. I was inspired by my grandmother’s 1970s square glasses and combined them with swimming goggles to create something unexpected.”

Each student’s inspiration tangibly comes to life through their designs. In celebrating this momentous anniversary, Silhouette looks forward by allowing their iconic minimalistic frames to be transformed into futuristic and innovative pieces of eyewear.

–Jillian Urcelay