Viewpoint: A true trailblazer

I was saddened to see last week that Gai Gherardi, who co-founded l.a.Eyeworks had passed away. Gherardi was an absolute trailblazer – a fantastic designer who, along with Barbara McReynolds, created something amazing, at a time when nothing quite like it existed in optics.  

I remember reading an article about how they started out buying frames in bulk and reimagining them – customising them completely to put their creations on sale in their Los Angeles store 40 or so years ago, prior to designing their own fabulous collection. 

I have always wanted to design eyewear. Unfortunately, the closest I think I will ever get to that is when I took heart-shaped dummy lenses from one frame and sent it to the lab with the metal work from a bright pink rimless frame to ‘create’ a pair of heart-shaped rimless spectacles.