L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2025 www.italoamericano.org 16 L'Italo-Americano F r o m t h e w o r k - s h o p s o f e a r l y twentieth-century Turin to the faces of Hollywood leg- ends, Persol has been mak- ing a statement for over a century. Its story begins in 1917, when photographer and optician Giuseppe Ratti started designing protective eyewear for pilots and tram drivers, people who faced wind, glare, and dust every day. Ratti's goal was simple: to protect their eyes while keep- ing vision clear. The name he chose, Persol, short for per il sole, "for the sun," perfectly embodied his aim and would become a byword for func- tional elegance. The first Persol glasses were built with longevity in mind: they featured tempered mineral lenses for durability, s o l i d y e t w e l l - b a l a n c e d frames, and a shape designed to sit comfortably on the face; w h e n R a t t i p a t e n t e d t h e Meflecto system in the late 1930s, he created one of the earliest flexible temples in eyewear: small metal cylin- ders inserted into the acetate arms allowed the frames to adjust gently to the wearer's head, eliminating pressure and improving comfort. It was a discreet innovation that transformed how glasses felt and remains one of Persol's defining features today. By the 1950s, Italy was moving fast, both economi- cally and culturally, and Per- sol's glasses began to embody the look of this new confi- dence: the 1957 model 649 was designed for Turin's tram drivers, whose open-cab vehi- cles exposed them to sunlight and dust. The oversized lens- es and gently curved frame offered protection, yet their proportions also conveyed refinement. It was this com- bination of practicality and grace that caught the atten- t i o n o f f i l m m a k e r s a n d actors, and when Marcello Mastroianni wore the 649 in Divorzio all'italiana in 1 9 6 1 , t h e g l a s s e s b e c a m e instantly iconic. A few years later, Persol developed the 714, a folding version of the 649 that could collapse at the bridge and t e m p l e s ; t h e i n n o v a t i o n required more than ten addi- tional production steps, mak- i n g e a c h p a i r c o m p l e x t o m a n u f a c t u r e b u t e a s y t o carry. The 714 gained global fame when Steve McQueen w o r e i t i n T h e T h o m a s Crown Affair in 1968. That image – the actor's cool con- fidence behind the amber- tinted lenses – helped Persol b e c o m e i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y famous. By then, however, t h e b r a n d h a d a l r e a d y entered the US market in 1962. It would eventually open a boutique on Rodeo Drive in 1991, aligning itself with the luxury segment. T h e f o l l o w i n g y e a r s brought changes in owner- ship but not in philosophy: in 1995 the brand was acquired by Luxottica, the Milan- based eyewear giant, which later merged with French lens maker Essilor in 2018 to form EssilorLuxottica. With- in this global group, Persol r e t a i n e d i t s i n d e p e n d e n t image as a house devoted to Italian design, craftsman- ship, and elegance. Today the Persol factory in Lauriano, near Turin, still produces frames using tradi- t i o n a l m e t h o d s a l o n g s i d e m o d e r n p r e c i s i o n t o o l s . Skilled workers hand-polish a c e t a t e , s e t h i n g e s , a n d a s s e m b l e l e n s e s w i t h t h e same care that defined Ratti's e a r l y e x p e r i m e n t s . T h e frames remain easily recog- nizable by their arrow-shaped hinge, called the Supreme Arrow, and by the smooth curve of the Meflecto tem- ples, both details that have become part of Italy's indus- trial design vocabulary. Very importantly, the com- pany markets its products as long-term companions rather than disposable acces- s o r i e s , e n c o u r a g i n g c u s - t o m e r s t o c h o o s e p e r m a - nence over novelty. This idea of durability, supported by craftsmanship and local pro- duction, is what allows Persol to remain distinctive, even if it belongs to one of the largest eyewear groups in the world. A strong sense of individuali- ty is also at the heart of Per- sol's own advertisement cam- p a i g n s , o f t e n f o c u s e d o n artisans at work and the care- ful hands that shape and pol- ish each frame, or on the her- itage of Turin rather than the glamour of global endorse- ments. More than a century after G i u s e p p e R a t t i b e g a n h i s experiments for pilots and tram drivers, Persol's glasses still have the same goal: pro- tection, clarity, and comfort, expressed through Italian design. To wear them is to take part in a story that con- nects invention with culture, and function with beauty. T he umbrella, the h u m b l e , s i m p l e tool we all use to k e e p d r y , o w e s o n e o f i t s k e y i m p r o v e m e n t s t o I t a l i a n ingenuity. In 1885, Giovan- ni Gilardini, an umbrella maker from Turin, patented the first automatic-open- i n g m e c h a n i s m , t r a n s - forming what had long been a m a n u a l a n d s o m e t i m e s awkward device into some- thing practical and modern. Before Gilardini's inven- tion, opening an umbrella required both hands and a bit of strength to push the canopy into position against the tension of the ribs. Gilar- dini's system introduced a spring-loaded shaft con- nected to a small lever or ring near the handle. With a simple movement, the spring released and the umbrella opened automatically. The same mechanism could also be adapted to close it, reduc- ing the effort needed to oper- ate it in wind or rain. His patent, filed in Italy and later registered in the United States, was even men- tioned in Scientific American that same year, 1885, noting its mechanical precision and ease of use. At the time, Turin was a c i t y k n o w n f o r t e c h n i c a l innovation and small-scale craftsmanship; Gilardini's contribution fitted naturally into that environment, where artisans and engineers often w o r k e d s i d e b y s i d e t o improve everyday objects. Though the automatic system would later be refined and commercialized by others, Gilardini's design laid the groundwork for what we now consider a standard feature. O v e r t h e f o l l o w i n g d e c a d e s , o t h e r i n v e n t o r s expanded on his idea: by the early twentieth century, new patents appeared in Europe and America, each adjusting the placement of springs and locks, but all tracing their concept back to the late-nine- t e e n t h - c e n t u r y I t a l i a n design. The compact folding umbrella, which came later i n 1 9 2 8 t h a n k s t o H a n s H a u p t a n d t h e G e r m a n b r a n d K n i r p s , a d d r e s s e d p o r t a b i l i t y r a t h e r t h a n m e c h a n i c s , p r o v i n g t h a t Gilardini's principle of con- venience continued to inspire innovation. T o d a y t h e a u t o m a t i c umbrella is so common that its origin is easily overlooked, y e t e v e r y t i m e a s p r i n g r e l e a s e s a n d t h e c a n o p y o p e n s i n o n e m o t i o n , i t reminds us of the work of a craftsman from Turin, who brought practical thinking together with a sense of pre- cision that still defines much of Italian design today. Gilardini created the automatic system to open and close umbrellas in 1885 (Image created with DALL-E 2) G i o v a n n i G i l a r d i n i , t h e m a n behind the automatic umbrella How Persol turned utility glasses into Italian icons A classical Persol model (Photo: Rowan Patrick/Dreamstime) IMPRESA ITALIA MADE IN ITALY TOP BRANDS BUSINESS & ECONOMY

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