PAWAKA

Conceptualized by Indonesian polymath Fahrani Empel (Fa’), PAWAKA blends contemporaneity with Indigenous heritage in its line of idiosyncratic eyewear. Following its 2015 launch, the label quickly found a hold in the luxury market, going on to be named one of Vogue Italia’s 200 Emerging Designers to Watch that same year. PAWAKA—a reference to both the Sanskrit word for “fire” and Fa’s grandfather’s war-time nickname—pays homage to the designer’s heritage, with style names in the Indonesian Bahasa language. Each pair of PAWAKA sunglasses and optical frames are expertly handcrafted in Japan: curves are added to classic aviator top bars, cat-eyes receive sharp corner cuts, and oversized frames with brutalist geometry act as unconventional accent pieces. With contemporary flair, PAWAKA expertly merges Indigeneity, familial history, and pop culture into ultramodern eyewear for the forward thinker.