Groc thumbnail 1
Groc thumbnail 2
Not on display

Groc

Sunglasses
1969 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The eyewear firm Oliver Goldsmith created this glasses frame, titled ‘Groc’, in 1969. Philip Oliver Goldsmith, a salesman for a small optical firm, founded this eyewear company in London in 1926. In 1935 his son Charles Goldsmith entered the firm with the aim of transforming glasses from a medical necessity to 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.

The firm created this frame at a time when materials were cut and shaped by hand in the company workshop. The frame’s black and white colouring and exaggerated oval eye shape made it a distinctive style which took advantage of fashion’s fascination with black and white at this time. The frame also features a universal fitting, which allowed it to be worn either way on face.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleGroc (manufacturer's title)
Materials and techniques
Plastic
Brief description
Straight-sided plastic framed sunglasses 'Groc', made by Oliver Goldsmith Eyewear, Great Britain, 1969
Physical description
Straight-sided black and white plastic framed sunglasses with vertical oval lenses.
Dimensions
  • Width: 125mm
  • Height: 7cm
Height = 70mm Width = 125 mm Depth = 150 mm
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
The eyewear firm Oliver Goldsmith created this glasses frame, titled ‘Groc’, in 1969. Philip Oliver Goldsmith, a salesman for a small optical firm, founded this eyewear company in London in 1926. In 1935 his son Charles Goldsmith entered the firm with the aim of transforming glasses from a medical necessity to 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.

The firm created this frame at a time when materials were cut and shaped by hand in the company workshop. The frame’s black and white colouring and exaggerated oval eye shape made it a distinctive style which took advantage of fashion’s fascination with black and white at this time. The frame also features a universal fitting, which allowed it to be worn either way on face.
Collection
Accession number
T.244Y-1990

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Record createdDecember 8, 2008
Record URL
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