Cinema and eyewear: 100 years of history of a myth
From October 14 until 23, 2009, as part of the IV edition of the International Rome Film Festival, the Auditorium Parco della Musica is hosting the show entitled “Cinema and Eyewear – 100 years of history of a myth”. The exhibition, the first of its kind, displays some of the most famous and most memorable eyeglasses from the history of cinema. Unique and exclusive pieces, thanks to which visitors will be able to rediscovery the most significant models of everyday objects through the stars, directors, and films that made them famous.
There are 20 of the most important pieces on display, exceptionally made available by the Eyewear Museum of Pieve di Cadore and the Galleria Guglielmo Tabacchi in Padua, two of the most prestigious and complete collections in the world. The exhibition is produced by EQUA in collaboration with the IV edition of the Rome Film Festival and with MIDO.
As an object of design worn on the face, thereby characterizing the wearer’s personality, eyeglasses have been used in cinema to effectively and spontaneously identify a character in his or her microcosm: we all remember the heart-shaped glasses of Lolita in the film of the same name, or the Tom Cruise’s aviators in Top Gun.
A special and evocative display consisting of 10 plexiglass and cherry wood cases designed by Jean Paul Troili will line the corridor of the foyer, serving as the perfect setting for some of the models that made cinema history. Dirk Bogarde’s famous glasses from Death in Venice, those of Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, those of the icon of cinema Marilyn Monroe, donned by the actress in one of her best-known films -“How to Marry a Millionaire”, up to Woody Allen’s in his “Banana Republic”, which became the emblem of the this New York director.
Each pair of glasses is complemented by photos of the stars and directors who wore them and immortalized them.
The Eyewear Museum of Pieve di Cadore (Belluno), which loaned the eyeglasses exhibited here, hosts one of the richest collections in the world dedicated to this object. The Museum boasts, in addition to eyewear, a vast collection of cases, binoculars, monocles, telescopes, magnifying glasses, and pince-nez. The Museum, in addition to some historic eyeglasses dating as far back as the 16th century, has a section dedicated entirely to the cinema.
The Galleria Guglielmo Tabacchi, houses one of the most important private collections of eyeglasses and objects related to eyewear and the human eye in the world. The exhibition is divided into historic, modern, military, science, and celebrity sections, with a vast assortment of frames, cases, accessories, instruments, prints, photos, advertisements, books, and works of art dedicated to the visual device par excellence.
Vittorio Tabacchi, Chairman of MIDO, the International Optics, Optometry, Ophthalmology Exhibition and of ANFAO, the National Association of Manufacturers of Optical Articles, expressed his enthusiasm for this initiative, which was made possible thanks to the union of two of the most important collections in the world: “I am truly proud that the fourth edition of the Rome Festival, which in just a few years has become one to the leading events in International cinema, is hosting this show. The Italian eyewear industry is the most prestigious of its kind in the world, and it is not by chance that many of the eyeglasses that have become legend thanks to the cinema are fruit of Italian creativity and produced by Italian companies. We are so proud of this premier that we wanted to present the most famous glasses to the public, those that made cinema history, becoming true “icons". All the visitors will be able to see unique pieces with their own eyes; an opportunity to delve into the past and rediscover the importance and charm of these icons of style.”
From October 14 to 23, 2009
Auditorium Parco della Musica – Viale Pietro de Coubertin, 30
Hours: 09:00 - Midnight - Free admission
