BRAND

Celluloid eyeglass frames, well known for the rich and deep color, were the mainstream in eyewear industry with its nature of improving comfort by providing softer contact with users’ skin during the middle of the 20th century. However, when it comes to the manufacturing process, celluloid is not suitable for mass production due to its high flammability that takes much time and effort to process.

Handing over the skilled craftsmanship for celluloid frames faces coming to an end as time goes by with mass production age. The designer, Fujiki Kumagai, was deeply concerned about this market fact as he has been in the fashion industry for long and it made him launched his eyewear brand {kearny} in 2013. He named {kearny} after Kearny Street in San Francisco where he used to be nesting when every time he visited there for thrifting a few chunks of the week as a vintage clothing buyer and put a wish “crossing of history and culture” into the name. Celluloid parts are used for all the glasses he designs to maintain the craftsmanship that defined the generation in future ages.

He pays great respect to the designs that vividly colored each period and continues exploring his dedicated manufacturing that integrate what he sees with his eyes and things touched by his hands into the products.

色に深みがあり、使い込むほど肌に馴染み熟成する生地として20世紀半ばまで主流だった、セルロイド製の眼鏡。量産に不向きな上、加工に手間が掛かる可燃性であることから、時の移ろいとともに技術の継承が途絶えつつある。この事実は、ファッションに関わる以上、危惧すべき事象と感じ、2013年に眼鏡ブランド＜kearny＞をスタート。

デザイナー・熊谷富士喜が、古着バイヤー時代に寝床としていたサンフランシスコ・カーニー通りにちなんだ、その名には“歴史と文化の交差”という意を込めた。眼鏡産業のいち時代を支えた職人技を後世に残したいという思いのもと、すべての眼鏡に用いたセルロイド製のパーツ。各年代を彩ったデザインに敬意を払い、自身が眼で見たもの、手で触れたものをプロダクトに溶け込ませる一意専心な物作りを探求する。