Sophia
Glasses
1972 (made)
1972 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Philip Oliver Goldsmith, a salesman for a small optical firm, founded his 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.
Charles Goldsmith designed this frame, titled ‘Sophia’, in 1963, a time when the plastic was cut and shaped by hand in the company's workshop. This frame was part of a trio of styles (Sophia, Pelota and Diplomat) which offered customers variations on the same basic shape.
Charles Goldsmith designed this frame, titled ‘Sophia’, in 1963, a time when the plastic was cut and shaped by hand in the company's workshop. This frame was part of a trio of styles (Sophia, Pelota and Diplomat) which offered customers variations on the same basic shape.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Sophia (manufacturer's title) |
| Materials and techniques | Acetate and plastic |
| Brief description | Shallow plastic framed glasses 'Sophia', made by Oliver Goldsmith Eyewear, Great Britain, 1972 |
| Physical description | Shallow brown framed glasses with a slight cat-eye shape. Acetate and plastic. |
| Dimensions |
|
| 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 his 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. Charles Goldsmith designed this frame, titled ‘Sophia’, in 1963, a time when the plastic was cut and shaped by hand in the company's workshop. This frame was part of a trio of styles (Sophia, Pelota and Diplomat) which offered customers variations on the same basic shape. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.244V-1990 |
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| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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