Eva Masaki is a line of small production eyewear inspired by the unique connections and collaborations with friends and artists across the globe. Through the designer’s own life spent living between Tokyo and New York, frames are made in a limited, rotational production of styles and colors that live and change with each season. Handmade in the Valdobbiadene region of Northern Italy, each frame is made with Zeiss lenses and cellulose acetate hand-cut by Mazzucchelli. Approachable but elegant. Classic but updated. Cultured, wearable, evocative, and colorful.
About the Designer
It was Eva Masaki Soroken’s middle name that first drew her to Japan. The name MASAKI (正木) is passed down from her Japanese mother, Chiyo Masaki, and grandmother, Natsue Masaki. In 2003, determined to learn more about her heritage and to speak Japanese with her grandmother Natsue, Eva moved to Japan. It was there, in Tokyo, where she became immersed in the world of Japanese design. Working with eyewear brands like Yamamoto Kogaku, Cutler and Gross, Marni, Garret Leight California Optical, and illesteva led Eva to a peripatetic life between Japan, Europe, and the US. But after a decade working in the industry, Eva set out to refine handmade, small production eyewear with her eponymous line EVA MASAKI.
Now based in New York with a family of her own, Eva passes along the name MASAKI to her daughters Taea (Taea Masaki) and Léona (Léona Masaki), in the tradition of her mother and grandmother before her. Designer Akira Minagawa of Mina Perhonen once shared with Eva that the kanji characters of MASAKI (正木) can be interpreted as "five trees." There are now five MASAKI women across four generations: grandmother Natsue Masaki (age 100 years old), mother Chiyo Masaki, Eva Masaki herself, and daughters Taea Masaki and Léona Masaki. A small but steadfast forest rooted in shared identity, gracefully evolving, adapting, and ever growing.
About the Logo
The Eva Masaki logo is adapted from Eva's father's handwriting, a gesture that gained even more meaning after his recent passing. "Since I can remember, I have always loved my father's handwriting. He would leave us notes in the morning when he'd go out to get his shinbun (newspaper) and send postcards from his travels in Asia. His handwriting kept me company then and continues to as I engrave and sticker frames and packaging with his hand of my own name," Eva explains.
After months of back-and-forth with Eva's graphic designer based in Tokyo, she turned to her father who likely spent days sketching her name to perfection ("it was who he was" she says). Finally, they sat down at her parent's kitchen table and settled on one they both liked. They sent it off to Tokyo, her designer lightly cleaned it up, put it into a file, and the logo was born.
Eva's father, Paul "Pop" Soroken, was an unending supporter of her entrepreneurship and bold moves in business. "Every time I see his artwork I smile, because it is as though he is still here, cheering me on in all my crazy endeavors."
Masaki Ave.
In addition to her line of eyewear, Eva founded Masaki Ave in 2003, a commerce consulting agency based in New York. Masaki Ave works with emerging and established brands to navigate global marketplaces, with an emphasis on US and Japanese relations. Through Eva’s work as Masaki Ave, a collaborative community of designers and brands across markets was created.