Autor: Newsroom

Two young engineers, Hans-Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher, and a little town, Grossaspach, located in the heart of Baden-Württemberg. These are the names that make up the acronym AMG, the performance and sports car brand of the iconic firm Mercedes-Benz. A story of hard work, passion, and success. The new ic! berlin eyewear collection was conceived with the values of AMG in mind – great attention to detail and a passion for high technology: four new frames designed and produced by the German brand, which was able to combine, once again, design and material research with skillful craftsmanship.

The collaboration between Mercedes-AMG and ic! berlin has brought together, since 2020, two globally recognized but very different German brands: a performance luxury brand like Mercedes-AMG and a brand that dominates the alternative scene in Berlin like ic! berlin. It could have been a bet, but it was a success: the great attention to design, artistic research, and high craftsmanship that the two brands have in common laid the foundations for three successful collections.

For spring 2024, ic! berlin and Mercedes-AMG Eyewear introduce four unisex designs, including both sunglasses and optical frames and featuring a very strong personality. The merit goes to the unique volumes, colorful details, and accurate selection of materials – from graphite to acetate, laminated steel and titanium.

Upon request from Altagamma – that Marcolin joined this year – and the National Chamber for Italian Fashion, the first “National Made in Italy Day” will kick off on April 15th, a special occasion to celebrate Italian creativity and excellence. The date was not chosen by chance, it is a tribute to Leonardo da Vinci, who was born on April 15th, 1452: a genius, a scientist, an inventor and an artist who embodied the “universal talent” celebrated in the Renaissance, thus becoming a universal symbol of Italian creativity worldwide.

A variety of initiatives will be held on Made in Italy Day: a roundtable, live experiences at companies and networking events with schools and universities.  The perfect occasion for young people to find out the many interesting training and work opportunities offered by the Italian high-end industry, which plays a key role in the country’s economy, employing almost 2 million people and representing a sector of excellence that is admired globally. An industry that, in light of future challenges, looks to the younger generations.

The day dedicated to our brand identity will also be an occasion for many to find out that Italy is more than just a breathtaking tourist destination (boasting 51 UNESCO heritage sites), it is also a country with a flourishing manufacturing industry. An industry that, in a variety of different sectors – ranging from food to high-tech and mechanics up to design and home interior – brings together passion, culture of beauty and investment in innovation. Three keywords that characterize Made in Italy products and that have always been a part of Marcolin’s DNA, which is one of the major promoters of Made in Italy Day. No vanity or self-celebration then, just another occasion to introduce our excellent manufacturing heritage to the public at large.

As a precious new addition to the Marcolin portfolio, MCM – the luxury travel leather goods and apparel brand established in Munich in 1976 (MCM stands for Modern Creation München) – makes its debut with a new, much-awaited eyewear collection. A range of optical frames and sunglasses that blend together the creativity of the German brand, loved by millennials for its bags, backpacks – which have become a symbol of the brand’s history – and leather accessories characterized by the celebrated monogram, with the technical and innovative heritage that has made the Longarone company recognized globally. The result? A glamorous, casual and versatile eyewear line perfect for travel and city wear and designed for creative minds, nomads and mavericks.

The first MCM Eyewear collection comprises a line of metal and acetate frames that speak a genderless universal language, characterized by a contemporary and functional design, colorful silhouettes and futuristic lines. The perfect choice for digital natives, the brand’s greatest fans who, in terms of apparel and accessories, prefer functional and, most importantly, gender-neutral layered looks.

The frames from the new collection produced by Marcolin feature iconic elements inspired by the world of travel leather goods. Turning into distinctive details, such as metal pins and angular inserts, these elements blend together with a new take on the brand’s signature logos to add the typical ironic and effortless touch of streetwear to these luxury frames: another way to redefine the travel theme according to the vision of digital natives. Available in over 650 MCM stores located in 39 countries, mostly in Asia, the collection will hit optician stores starting October 2024.

Oasi Zegna is a natural reserve that covers an area of 100 km² in the Biella Alps, in Piedmont, Northern Italy. At the beginning of the last century, Ermenegildo Zegna undertook a vast reforestation program in the mountainous area surrounding his wool mill and, for the first time, connected the two sides of the mountain through the construction of the 232 Road. The reforestation and local community development project that gave rise to Oasi Zegna now boasts over 500,000 trees and promotes cohesion and harmony between humans, industry and nature.

The founder’s vision has been nurtured by successive generations, who continue to preserve Oasi Zegna as a unique model of social and environmental awareness. The 232 Road, symbolises the union between the past and the future, is now the distinctive Brand Mark of every Zegna garment, paying tribute to the values and ideas that have guided the brand. Ermenegildo Zegna transformed ideas into a commitment to producing the world’s finest fabrics – creating a forest, road and communities in the process. The Founder always prioritised quality over quantity with this approach present across the brand’s ready-to-wear and runway collections.

The brand’s enduring dedication to craftsmanship is strikingly evident in the ZEGNA Eyewear collection, which draws from the brand’s origins in Oasi Zegna. The collection—which features styles like Aurora, meaning ‘sunrise’ and Orizzonte, meaning ‘horizon’—is inspired by the panoramic Alpine views afforded by the brand’s unique natural territory.

Rendered in a carefully curation of lightweight metals and glossy acetates, ZEGNA Eyewear is at once timeless and contemporary, making the selection of sunglasses and opticals ideal for everyday wear. Featuring a variety of stylish silhouettes, the collection is designed to perfectly complement ZEGNA’s luxurious wardrobe offering, which is crafted from sophisticated materials including Oasi Cashmere and Oasi Lino.

ZEGNA is set to launch their new ‘Born in Oasi Zegna’ Book at this year’s edition of Milan Design Week. Told over the course of four beautifully printed chapters, Born in Oasi Zegna is a striking homage to the pioneering Founder of the world’s leading luxury menswear brand.

Eileen Gray and Lee Miller. Two contemporary female icons who are a great source of inspiration for a brand like Max Mara, as well as the undisputed stars of the new eyewear collection designed by Marcolin. The first one is an Irish architect and designer, as well as a globally recognized pioneer of the modernist movement, who graced the pages of British Vogue back in 1917 and who, in Paris in the 1920s, combined her work in architecture with her work on the series production of tubular steel furniture pieces (her adjustable table E-1027 is part of the permanent collection of MoMA in New York). A world-famous model who later became a sophisticated and fearless photographer, Lee Miller is a leading figure in the surrealist movement but also a war photographer, actually one of the first (and the only woman) to capture the liberation of Paris and the Nazi concentration camps.

Max Mara, a brand that has always loved celebrating the style and personality of the most interesting and influential female figures in contemporary history, thus stays true to its attitude also in this eyewear collection. It does so with an eyewear release that, with its interplay of lines and dimensions, nuances and precious details, evokes the signature style of these two key figures in the aesthetic and culture of the Twentieth Century. Eileen Gray’s rigorous and detail-oriented style and Lee Miller’s glamorous and unconventional one.

But how do Eileen Gray’s architecture and Lee Miller’s attitude translate into the new Max Mara eyewear collection? With innovative, edgy yet elegant designs, as well as frames that amaze with their oversize looks, sinuous lines, tubular profiles and bold volumes. A variety of different aesthetic solutions, including some options embellished with Maxim, the sparkling jewel-like geometric detail that identifies the collection and that co-stars in this all-women collection.