Pyramid
Sunglasses
1966 (made)
1966 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Philip Oliver Goldsmith, a salesman for a small optical firm, founded the Oliver Goldsmith eyewear company in London in 1926. In 1935 his son Charles Goldsmith entered the firm with the aim of making glasses a fashion item. From the company’s offices in Poland Street, his sons A. Oliver and Ray Goldsmith built upon the company’s reputation for attention-grabbing designs and solicited celebrity endorsement for their products. Key clients included Lord Snowdon, the actor Diana Dors, Princess Grace of Monaco and Diana, Princess of Wales.
A. Oliver Goldsmith designed this frame in 1966 when plastic for eyeglasses was still cut and shaped by hand in the company’s workshop. Goldsmith created the design for this frame to fit a hairstyle created by Vidal Sassoon that same year.
A. Oliver Goldsmith designed this frame in 1966 when plastic for eyeglasses was still cut and shaped by hand in the company’s workshop. Goldsmith created the design for this frame to fit a hairstyle created by Vidal Sassoon that same year.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Title | Pyramid (manufacturer's title) |
Materials and techniques | Plastic |
Brief description | Plastic sunglasses 'Pyramid' in triangular form, made by Oliver Goldsmith Eyewear, Great Britain, 1966 |
Physical description | White plastic sunglasses with hinged plastic arms. Pyramid shape with rounded, right-angled, triangular lenses. |
Dimensions |
|
Production type | Ready to wear |
Credit line | Given by A. Oliver Goldsmith, in memory of his father, Charles Oliver Goldsmith |
Object history | Registered File number 1990/200. These glasses form part of a design archive of the British eyewear company Oliver Goldsmith. The archive, which consists of approximately 70 glasses frames from the 1930s to the late 1980s, was donated by A. Oliver Goldsmith, grandson of the founder, and former chief designer at the firm. A. Oliver Goldsmith donated the material to the V & A in memory of his father Charles Goldsmith. |
Summary | Philip Oliver Goldsmith, a salesman for a small optical firm, founded the Oliver Goldsmith eyewear company in London in 1926. In 1935 his son Charles Goldsmith entered the firm with the aim of making glasses a fashion item. From the company’s offices in Poland Street, his sons A. Oliver and Ray Goldsmith built upon the company’s reputation for attention-grabbing designs and solicited celebrity endorsement for their products. Key clients included Lord Snowdon, the actor Diana Dors, Princess Grace of Monaco and Diana, Princess of Wales. A. Oliver Goldsmith designed this frame in 1966 when plastic for eyeglasses was still cut and shaped by hand in the company’s workshop. Goldsmith created the design for this frame to fit a hairstyle created by Vidal Sassoon that same year. |
Collection | |
Accession number | T.244A-1990 |
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Record created | October 4, 2007 |
Record URL |
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