#0023 Eyewear

The collector: My name is William Wu. I am an Asian born and raised in the Republic of China, Taipei. I travelled abroad for a different approach of education when I was 12.  I spent 4 years in the lovely city of Vancouver, BC for middle school and the rest of my education in New York. I am currently working in NYC as an illustrator/graphic designer.  

 

The collection: Eyewear.

The story behind the collection:

If life is a stage, eyewear are my masks. I like to change. If I cannot change so much of my life style, I'll change the way I look.  Fortunately I am in the design field and people around me appreciate my minor change. When I wear them, my mood and personality change accordingly. I notice minor differences in behavior, speech or the way I walk. Life is fun with change. Eyewear selection is most important.  What I select will be on my face.  I will reflect who I am, my taste, how I want to present myself to others that day.  Put simply, it will be the first item any stranger will see. Not my watch, not my shoes, maybe not even my eyes.

I purchased my first eyewear in 1997.  Currenly I have 72 pairs. I have given several pairs away to my mom, sisters and friends.

My collection is not meant to displayed behind glass but on my face. They are placed randomly everywhere in my apartment.  Eyewear is easy because each pair comes with a protective case. Because I have so many, each item holds its condition very well.

 

My favourite find might be my Vintage Cazal 735s.  This item was selling as low as $160.  I watched for several months and an online source had 2 pairs in stock for a while. Due to my huge past card debt, I didn't make my purchase right away. In 2009 Brad Pitt was on the cover of a tabloid with Cazal 735. That same day I ran and searched online right away but they had all sold out.  I was heartbroken and blame Brad Pitt. It took me several months to find mine from Greece.  They cost me triple than what I planned to spend.

 

 

There are several models still on my wish list:  DITA: Statesman, RetroSuperFuture: Topski, Oliver Peoples: Sunset, HERRLICHT, götti SWITZERLAND, Mykita, Markus T: ME and few Japanese makers. The list goes on. "GREED is GOOD".

 

My other collections include film cameras & lenses, watches, knives, flashlights, billiard cues, Lacoste Polos (30+ of different colors), Levis jeans (45 pairs). I never intended to collect items. I just shop a lot for things that I am into.  To me, a collection is something that is often locked behind glass for browsing purposes only. The stuff I've bought was never meant to serve that purpose.  So I would say that I just shop a lot but am not obsessed, because I'm into more than one thing.  With an obsession, technically you focus on just one thing. 

 

I don't like to spend my money on items that devalue greatly such as digital cameras (I do not own one).  I like to buy top of the line items because they hold a high resale value.  I also buy a lot of used high end items.  To me, the resale value IS the true value of an item.  People often use top of the line items with care or are even afraid to use them.  When they don't need them and sell them, the condition is often near mint or excellent.  If I ever need to sell, my buying and selling price often very similar.  In theory, they are nearly FREE!  So I don't like to buy low end products that hold very little value.  A different way of thinking, a smart way to shop.

 

William shares more images, product descriptions and thoughts on his collection on his Flickr page.

Images © William Wu, portrait by Ping Lin and used with their kind permission.