Charles Eames and Ray Eames were the embodiment of the inventiveness, energy and optimism at the heart of mid-century modern American design, and have been recognized as the most influential designers of the 20th century. As furniture designers, filmmakers, artists, textile and graphic designers and even toy and puzzle makers, the Eameses were a visionary and effective force for the notion that design should be an agent of positive change. They are the happy, ever-curious, ever-adventurous faces of modernism. Charles studied architecture and industrial design. Ray (née Beatrice Alexandra Kaiser) was an artist, who studied under the abstract expressionist Hans Hofmann. They met in 1940 at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in suburban Detroit (where Charles also met his frequent collaborator Eero Saarinen and the artist and designer Harry Bertoia) and married the next year. His technical skills and her artistic flair were wonderfully complementary. They moved to Los Angeles in 1941, where Charles worked on set design for MGM.
In the evenings at their apartment, they experimented with molded plywood using a handmade heat-and-pressurization device they called the “Kazam!” machine. The next year, they won a contract from the U.S. Navy for lightweight plywood leg splints for wounded servicemen — they are coveted collectibles today; more so those that Ray used to make sculptures. The Navy contract allowed Charles to open a professional studio, and the attention-grabbing plywood furniture the firm produced prompted George Nelson, the director of design of the furniture-maker Herman Miller Inc., to enlist Charles and (by association, if not by contract) Ray in 1946. Some of the first Eames items to emerge from Herman Miller are now classics: the “LCW,” or Lounge Chair Wood, and the “DCM,” or Dining Chair Metal, supported by tubular steel. The Eameses eagerly embraced new technology and materials, and one of their peculiar talents was to imbue their supremely modern design with references to folk traditions.
Their “Wire Chair” group of the 1950s, for example, was inspired by basket weaving techniques. The populist notion of “good design for all” drove their “Molded Fiberglass” chair series that same decade, and also produced the organic-form, ever-delightful “La Chaise.” In 1956 the “Lounge Chair” and ottoman appeared — the supremely comfortable plywood-base-and-leather-upholstery creation that will likely live in homes as long as there are people with good taste and sense. Charles Eames once said, “The role of the designer is that of a very good, thoughtful host anticipating the needs of his guests.” For very good collectors and thoughtful interior designers, a piece of design by the Eameses, the closer produced to original conception the better, is almost de rigueur — for its beauty and comfort, and not least as a tribute to the creative legacy and enduring influence of Charles and Ray Eames.12 Things You Didn’t Know About the Eames Lounge Chair & Ottoman
The Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman has been in continuous production Since 1956. Celebrating Ray Eames on Her Birthday December 15, 2016, Ray Eames would have turned 104 years old. In celebration of her birthday,...For many years, the Eames Office produced the sales materials used to promote their products. Clockwise top to bottom: DCM (Dining Chair, Metal Legs), PSC (Pivoting Side Shell, Contract Base), DKR-2 (Dining or Desk-height Wire Chair, 2-piece upholstered pad), RAR-1 (Rocking Arm Shell Chair) In 1953, the Eames Office photographed, designed, and produced several postcards, including the two seen here featuring Eames chairs in a variety of models. That same year, in a letter of advice to the California furniture craftsman Sam Maloof, Charles Eames explained the importance of producing such graphics. “The royalty system, under which we work, as do people like Eero Saarinen and George Nelson, has proved most satisfactory and gives the designer a continued responsibility.”
Charles points out that the higher the royalty, the greater the designer’s responsibility. The highest royalty would be paid to those designers who take “continued responsibility to the product, servicing it as far as the design of the literature, exhibitions, displays, public relations, etc., etc. etc.” Charles reiterates this important point, in his concluding remarks, explaining that “The varying percentage of royalty is usually and should be dependent on the amount of service and responsibility the designer is willing to give the client and the amount the client is willing to accept. If the designer has an understanding of the problem and the ability to view the situation in a round way including the points of view of the customer and the client, then the more responsibility he is willing to accept, the more valuable he will be to the client.” Read more from the correspondence between Charles Eames and Sam Maloof in An Eames Anthology (112-114). Clockwise top to bottom: DAX-1 (Dining or Desk-height Armchair, Metal Legs), PSC-1 (Pivoting Side Shell, Contract Base, Upholstered), LCM (Lounge Chair, Metal Legs), DSR (Dining or Desk-height Fiberglass Side Chair)
The Eames Office not only designed the vibrant graphics, but also took the extra step of sourcing the best printers in Los Angeles and overseeing the press run. Pleased with the outcome, Herman Miller asked Charles and Ray to produce similar cards for George Nelson’s designs for Herman Miller. Other examples of the continuing service Charles and Ray provided to Herman Miller include the Herman Miller Stock Certificate, the architecture and interior design of Herman Miller’s Los Angeles showroom, and many delightful product films.Vintage Eames Molded Plywood Splint Double click on above image to view full picture In this product is only available at:This Online Shop Please Select your countryUnited States AfghanistanÅland IslandsAlbaniaAlgeriaAmerican SamoaAndorraAngolaAnguillaAntarcticaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaArubaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahamasBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBermudaBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBouvet IslandBrazilBritish Indian Ocean TerritoryBritish Virgin IslandsBruneiBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCayman IslandsCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaChristmas IslandCocos [Keeling] IslandsColombiaComorosCongo - BrazzavilleCongo - KinshasaCook IslandsCosta RicaCôte d’IvoireCroatiaCubaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkDjiboutiDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEthiopiaFalkland IslandsFaroe IslandsFijiFinlandFranceFrench GuianaFrench PolynesiaFrench Southern
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Virgin IslandsUzbekistanVanuatuVatican CityVenezuelaVietnamWallis and FutunaWestern SaharaYemenZambiaZimbabwe Why do we ask? The Eames Molded Leg Splints were made in 1943 as a valuable contribution by Charles and Ray Eames to World War II. Upon hearing that the metal splints being used to stabalize leg injuries were actually causing further injury due to the amplified vibrations, Charles and Ray set out address the problem with the material they were experimenting with in their LA home- molded plywood. It is estimated that 150,000 splints were made and used during World War II. The Eames Office found a number or splints years ago and decided to make this beloved piece or history available in limited numbers. These items are truly beautiful and an important milestone on the Eames journey. While they are available, splints are still in their original wrapping with the sticker. We do not open wrapping to check on the condition, although we can get a good estimate of the condition by the condition of the wrapping.