«MC Eyewear» is a joint collaboration between the artist Michel Comte and Optiker Zwicker. Three eyewear models that can be worn as both aids to vision and sunglasses.

The highlight: each model can be made as both an aid to vision and sunglasses. The bottom line: Comte returns to his roots. And that makes him happy, as it does the owner of Optiker Zwicker, Daniel Halder: «It is a great pleasure to be part of its history and to offer these brilliant designs exclusively.» And Comte himself says: «Today I’m back in my hometown and am lucky enough to be working with Optiker Zwicker – where it all began – and launching a special eyewear collection.»

Uniqueness in view

For both Comte and Zwicker, glasses are more than just a visual aid. They are a reflection of the wearer’s personality and emphasises a person’s character. «The glasses in this collection are for people who want to make a statement,» emphasises the artist. «They are for everyone who knows that glasses not only improve vision, but also underline their personality.» The models are inspired by a pair of glasses that Comte himself wore for many years and which became an important companion. A pair of glasses that he discovered by chance in a vintage shop, but which captivated him just as much as Saint-Laurent’s glasses once did.

The glasses themselves are particularly impressive because of their frames – they are not delicate. They are eye-catching and distinctive. And they also have special names: Nearco, Luna and Bianca. The three models in the collection were named after important characters in Comte’s life: Nearco was his racehorse, Luna was his dog’s name and he called his cat Bianca, in tribute to social and human rights activist Bianca Jagger.

Photos Copyrights: Michel Comte, Optiker Zwicker

«Bucherer exclusive» represents a special edition of the swiss luxury retailer and, at the same time, high-quality watchmaking. The timepieces from renowned manufacturers are available as special editions and are sometimes very limited.

Perfection and uniqueness are two of the cornerstones of the art of watchmaking. Something that the Swiss company Bucherer, a household name, values. Anyone looking for the perfect watch for them in Zurich will find it right here – in the five-storey building at Bahnhofstrasse 50. «Bucherer Exclusives» also stands for precision craftsmanship, unmistakable design and finesse. The exclusive pieces, almost all of which are limited editions, were created by Bucherer in an exclusive partnership with renowned manufacturers such as H. Moser & Cie. and Ulysse Nardin, to name just a couple. Around 40 very special models have been created so far and this is what gets lovers of beautiful timepieces in a really enthusiastic mood. Extraordinary, experimental and exclusive.

Girard-Perregaux

For now, let us start with the special edition of the Laureato chronograph made by «Girard-Perregaux». The over 200-year-old manufacture based in La Chaux-de-Fonds represents the fact that a timepiece is so much more than just what is needed to find out the time. The dial of this Special Edition features a silver «Clous de Paris» pattern and blue auxiliary dials, in other words, a colour scheme that echoes Bucherer’s signature colours.

However, the model naturally continues to display its characteristic features – such as the raised, octagonal bezel – in style; after all, it makes the Laureato collection, which has been available since 1975, one of the most popular of the «Girard-Perregaux» brand. The same applies to the seamless transition of the steel case and bracelet. This special model is definitely worth a second look for those who embrace extravagance on their wrist.

Breitling

Another masterpiece, this time from Breitling, has also been given a new look thanks to the «Bucherer Exclusive» collection. In this joint project between Bucherer and Breitling, the “Superocean” has been reissued as a stylish trio in three versions. The «Superocean Automatic 44» impresses with its light blue dial and ceramic inserts. So does its smaller sister, which, with a diameter of 36 mm, also fits somewhat narrower wrists. And the third watch in the collection is the «Superocean Automatic 42». It is a real eye-catcher thanks to its burgundy red-coloured minute scale and a bezel in red gold. However, there are only 88 pieces available of each, so Breitling fans should hurry.

L’Epee 1839

And yes, when we talk about timepieces, we can also think of time travel. With the «Bucherer Exclusive Time Machine», Bucherer has brought this illusion known from science fiction films to life in the form of a table clock. Or in other words, brought them to life together with the L’Epée 1839 brand. The mechanical sculpture is very reminiscent of a time capsule. The fascinating look, futuristic design and moving elements of the sculpture are skilfully combined with all the refinements of watchmaking. The time capsule – glass tube, time display and the entire mechanical movement – can be set in rotation. This timepiece is definitely one of the most unusual items in the «Bucherer Exclusive» collection and one of the newest. The collector’s item is limited to 20 pieces worldwide.

Photos Copyrights: Bucherer

As one of Germany’s most talented architects, Sigurd Larsen designs extraordinary houses and hotels. His design studio combines the aesthetics of high-quality materials with functionality and complex contexts. What is particularly important to him when designing is the interaction with daylight and the embedding of the building in a strong narrative.

You recently completed the Lakehouse in West Berlin, what was the design idea?
The Lakehouse is a public facility for sport and exercise; you can also rent the house for seminars, events or exhibitions. It’s a great place by a lake on the border with Brandenburg. It consists of several small areas so that events can take place at the same time. It also gives you a scale that feels more like a big house with a kitchen than an airport lobby, and that was the intention. Of course there is also the interaction with daylight: on one side of the building the sun shines through a forest in the morning – incredibly beautiful light. Throughout the day it moves around the building, which is fanned out in all directions towards the lake. And there is a beautifully framed sunset. It is a beautiful experience when the sun is low, the sun shines through the treetops and reflects in the lake. That’s why we installed these large windows to catch the beautifully filtered light. In addition, the house was built by a Swiss company from exceptionally prefabricated wooden elements; it was supposed to be state of the art with integrated power cables.

Lakehouse, Berlin

Exciting! Your own house in Greece looks completely different.
Yes, it’s called Piperi, which means pepper in Greek – the name comes from the small island on which the house stands. I totally fell in love with the property and the views of this uninhabited island. The house faces east towards the sunrise, on the other side you can enjoy the sunset, which is beautiful. However, there was a strict development plan there, one of the strictest in Europe. Piperi is a very well preserved island with very few tourists. All the houses are white cubes with white stairs and that’s how I wanted to design my house, even though I was forced to do so due to the local building culture. There are also rules about proportions, windows and all sorts of things. We wanted to build a house that had the same exciting, almost labyrinthine feeling as the small Greek villages with their countless stairs. It was extremely interesting to deal with the building culture and local crafts.

Piperi, Greece

And what was the challenge with the Glass House in Uckermark?
The Glass House is a weekend house for a family from Berlin, which is also rented out. The idea was that you come from Berlin, walk through the door and suddenly you’re in this other quiet world and look at the landscape. We wanted to create added value with the attic, realised that the view up there is extremely beautiful and that’s how the idea of the transparent roof came about. Instead of bricks we used glass, otherwise it is a typical wooden roof construction. Our photographers came back one day with incredible pictures of the sunset that made the whole house look like Ayers Rock in Australia, from yellow to red to purple. To be honest, we weren’t really aware of the effect when we built it and it turned out much better than we thought.

Glass House, Uckermark

How do you think we will live in the future, what will change?
The last small living revolution occurred during the pandemic, when suddenly everyone at home was equipped with a home office. Previously there was a lot of talk about offices being more homely and suddenly there was actually a movement towards home. But how we build our houses is also important: we see among the younger generations a desire to build significantly smaller houses today, with less material. This must be made possible so that they can be approved.

You also design hotels, currently one in Crete. What makes a successful hotel for you?
A really good hotel always has to have a theme. This doesn’t have to be big. At the Michelberger Hotel in the Spreewald, for example, the theme is gastronomy and all of the building’s materials were – similar to food – lifted from the earth, baked, fired or oiled. You can feel the connection between gastronomy and architecture and you can look after yourself in the large garden next door. The guests sleep under the roof, are directly connected to the large common room in the morning and you can smell breakfast being prepared there. You live in the middle of it all and can see the garden all the time, where you can taste, smell and touch everything. This is a clear theme for a hotel and it works wonderfully.

Photos Copyrights: Tobias Koenig, Michael Romstoeck

Celebrating the art of travel since 1854, this autumn Louis Vuitton is setting off again for new horizons, with the publication of three additional titles in its fashion eye series of photography books: Vienna by Stefanie Moshammer, Hong Kong by Frank Horvat and Deauville by Omar Victor Diop. As with the previous titles, each book reveals a country, region, city or place through the eyes of a fashion photographer.

With affection and wit, the Austrian photographer Stefanie Moshammer plays on familiar clichés about Vienna and offers an unexpected portrait of her hometown, while a selection of largely unpublished black-and-white images of 1960s Hong Kong by the Italian-born French photographer Frank Horvat reveals a city whose teeming streets never seem to grow weary of their thronging pedestrians. For his part, the Senegalese photographer Omar Victor Diop trains his lens on Deauville, the iconic seaside resort on the Normandy coast, exalting its streets and edifices, but also exploring its connections with his native Dakar.
A natural fit for the soul of travel, photography is an evident form of expression for Louis Vuitton, whose editorial process makes sure that the book is granted the status of a medium in its own right, with the singular aim of continually renewing its visual vocabulary. Fashion Eye is a tailor-made series: each type of paper or binding, each layout, and sometimes even the printing processes used, in keeping with artisanal tradition, serve the title at hand. For a book is first and foremost the work of an author, a designer and a printer.

Title after title, a broad compendium of perspectives emerges, one that shifts with the destinations, including urban panoramas and natural landscapes, scenes of local life, and more contemplative work, with images in colour and/or black and white. Each book in the series features an ample selection of large-format photographs, accompanied by biographical information and an interview with the photographer or a critical essay. Fashion Eye gives rise to an unprecedented dialogue between emerging talent, seasoned photographers and fashion photography legends. It confronts contemporary creation with little-known archival treasures to create a collection of invaluable reference works, as much in terms of its approach as its aesthetics.

VIENNA

Embracing the opportunity to work on a project about her native city, Stefanie Moshammer brilliantly crafts visual stories that combine myriad layers of interpretation as she follows the avenues opened up by her formal exploration of elements ranging from the staging of scenes and abstraction to screenshots.
Taking as her starting point the space occupied by Vienna in the collective imagination, along with all its clichés, she delights in entangling her readers in the Austrian capital’s physical and mental mysteries, drawing inspiration from its seminal figures and important historical places, but also eliciting more self-reflective moments, imbued with poignant intimacy.
The result is a narrative like no other, where past and present engage in a rambling conversation in order to better give shape to a certain vision of what Vienna is… or is not.

STEFANIE MOSHAMMER

Born in 1988, Stefanie Moshammer is a visual artist whose practice plays out at the intersection of empiricism and experimentation. After having earned a diploma in textile design from the Viennese fashion school Modeschule Hetzendorf, she studied graphic design and photography at the University of Art and Design Linz, before taking courses in advanced visual storytelling and in social and cultural anthropology.
Moshammer is the author of several books, including Vegas and She (Fotohof Edition, 2015), Land of Black Milk (Skinnerboox, 2017), Not Just Your Face Honey (Spector Books, 2018) and Each Poison, A Pillow (Images Vevey, 2023).

She has received numerous prizes, awards and other honours, and her work has been published in various print and online publications such as i-D, Art – Das Kunstmagazin, ZEITmagazin and Harper’s Bazaar. Her photographs have been exhibited at galleries and museums in Austria, but also across Europe and inthe United States, China and South Korea.

HONG KONG

In 1962, the German magazine Revue asked Frank Horvat to team up with the writer Dieter Lattmann to create a number of features on major cities around the world. In late 1962, the duo thus arrived for a stay in Hong Kong,then under British rule, which had been seeing a massive influx of refugees from China over the past 10 years.
Horvat was fascinated to discover a dense city laid out vertically, packed with people, dwellings, objects and symbols, where empty space was unimaginable. It perfectly suited the photographer’s style because he liked to compose his images in black and white, filling the frame with his subject. As a large part of the commissioned work was not included in the published article, most of the images appearing in this book have never been seen before.

FRANK HORVAT

Born in Italy in 1928, Frank Horvat grew up in Switzerland. He made his way to Paris in 1951, where he met Henri Cartier‑Bresson, one of the founders of Magnum Photos, whose influence would be decisive for him. Horvat settled in Paris in 1955 and rapidly gained recognition through his photographs taken with a telephoto lens and his interest in capturing nightlife scenes in the French capital. His sharp journalist’s eye would serve him well for his fashion images, featured in publications such as Jardin des Modes, British Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. Favouring shots taken in the streets, he brought a freshness and vitality to fashion photography, thus playing a key role in its revival.

After his round-the-world trip for Revue in 1962 and 1963, Horvat rarely worked again as a photojournalist. Beginning in the 1970s, he turned his attentions to more personal work, with each project giving rise to a book or an exhibition. He died in Paris on 21 October 2020. Horvat’s work has been the subject of many retrospective exhibitions, the most recent of which was presented in 2023 at the Jeu de Paume in Paris.

DEAUVILLE

Omar Victor Diop has attracted notice through works bringing together a visual artist’s sense of colour, atmosphere and composition, the world of fashion, and portrait photography. In 2022, with the aim of presenting a creative residency hosted by the Planches Contact festival as a title in the Fashion Eye series, he was invited to Deauville, where his project emerged as a trek through the streets of this seaside resort on the Normandy coast, whose landscapes reminded him of the Atlantic Ocean beaches of his Dakar childhood. Diop redraws and heightens the impact of the resort’s houses and other buildings, making them the theatre for a personal odyssey, with cameos by other characters and alter egos, all manifestations of his inner thoughts as a Dakarois abroad.
This new series, perhaps the first one by Diop that is truly autobiographical, juxtaposes present and past, composite identities, and the values, traditions, voices and ideas of different cultures.

OMAR VICTOR DIOP

Born in Dakar, Senegal in 1980, Omar Victor Diop was brought up there and now divides his time between his birthplace and Paris. Fascinated by photography, literature and history from a very early age, the convergence of these interests became fertile ground for his vivid imagination, leading him to hone his talents in several art forms, from collage and creative writing to fashion and textile design. An invitation to take part in the ninth edition of the Pan-African photography biennial. Rencontres de Bamako (Bamako Encounters), held in 2011 in Mali, marked the beginning of Diop’s professional career as a photographer.

His works are in the permanent collections of major institutions and have been shown at exhibitions as part of high-profile international events. Diop’s images also appear regularly in magazines around the world, gracing the pages of Harper’s Bazaar, Spanish Vogue and Madame Figaro, among others. His first monograph, Omar Victor Diop, was published by 5 Continents Editions in 2021.

Photos Copyrights: Louis Vuitton