Since its launch in 1956 the Lounge Chair has since been in continuous production. It won the first prize at the Milan Triennial of 1957 and it was accepted to the design collection of the Museum of Modern Art in 1960. We used to own a newer Eames lounge chair a few years back, but that one was sold some time ago and replaced by two vintage ones. to the restoration of the two disassembled Lounge Chairs in the Man Cave, Pekka has intensively been searching information about the history of this chair. Despite it is well known, the detailed history and evolution of the chairs is not, however, as widely recognized. Eames Lounge Chair (Herman Miller late 1960's model) So, let’s get started. Chair, officially titled as Eames Lounge (670) and Ottoman (671), first appeared on the Arlene Francis “Home” show broadcast on the NBC television network in US in 1956. The chair is a design of Charles and Ray Eames (husband and wife, not two brothers) for the Herman Miller furniture company, and it was released after several
In the early days of the Lounge Chair, Ray Eames remarked in a letter to Charles that it looked "comfortable and un-designy". Charles's original concept had indeed been a chair with "the warm, receptive look of a well-used first baseman's mitt." The Lounge Chair was originally produced and exported worldwide only by US company Herman Miller inDespite its later success the initial sales were not very promising when compared to the tooling investment that had been done for mass production. During the chair's first full year of production only 484 items were sold. Subsequently, the sales rose to 1300 items per year in the beginning of 1960 and to 3500 per year by the end of the decade, ultimately hitting a hundred thousand items by 2004 et al.). Herman Miller base on the left, Vitra base on the right First generation Lounge chair, armrest with tree screws Surprise in our first generation cushion filling - layer of foam added afterwards! Cushion clip - pre October 1971
Cushion clip - post October 1971 First & second generation label First generation push-on rubber boot (before 1957) Screw-in glides, "Dome of Silence" (after 1957) For the Eames Lounge Chair part II please go here. Eames Chair and Ottoman,from $3,579 at Design Within Reach When is a chair more than simply a piece of furniture? When it's an iconic piece of American design? When it's a status symbol? A hallmark of success, authority and good taste? The Eames Lounge Chair is all of these and on top of those lofty attributes, it's cushy and comfortable to sit in as well. Introduced 55 years ago by husband-and-wife team Charles and Ray Eames for the Herman Miller furniture company, the unique looking chair is part sculpture, part recliner—a La-Z-Boy for the high minded. Citing inspiration from the traditional English club chair, Charles Eames once famously remarked he wanted to construct a chair with "the warm receptive look of a well-used first baseman's mitt."
And once you sit it one, you find out that he wasn't all talk. The cushions are softer than expected and the seat is permanently tilted at a 15-degree angle to take the weight off your lower spine. Meaning you've got no choice but to relax and get comfortable. Which may explain why it instantly became the chosen chair by such big shots as CEOs, psychiatrists, college deans or architects. The chair continues to be a favorite among elites and aesthetes of all kinds. Scott Sternberg, the designer of Band of Outsiders, has a vintage Eames lounge chair in his office. The chair has been in continuous production since its introduction. Each piece—from the seven-ply wood veneer to the die-cast aluminum braces to the tufted leather—utilizes the best materials, all assembled by hand here in the states. Even a table-top miniature (handmade to one-sixth scale by Vitra) will run you six hundred bucks. But it's truly a timeless piece of furniture. And a masculine manifestation of form and function that you'll enjoy sitting in for decades.
Mid-Century Danish Easy Lounge Chairs by Grete Jalk for France & Daverkosen, 1960s, Set of 2 Brass and Mirrored Coffee Cocktail Table by Willy Rizzo for Cidue, 1970s Vintage End Sofa Tables, Set of 2 Large PP 70 Dining Table by Hans J. Wegner for PP Furniture, 1970s Italian Lacquered Wood and Velvet Poufs, 1950s, Set of 2 Sculptural Console Table, 1940s Glass & Teak Cabinet by Dieter Waeckerlin for Behr Möbel, 1958 Vintage Danish Chest of Drawers with Four Drawers Slatted Coffee Table, 1950s Coffee Table with Magazine Rack by Mathieu Mategot, 1950s Danish Teak Sideboard from Pedersen & Son, 1960s Rosewood Petal Low Table, 1960s Custom-Made Buffet by Elli Kruithof & Raymond Goovaerts for Loral & Straatman, 1952 Large Teak & Resopal Sideboard, 1960s Dutch Industrial Modular Wall Unit by D.Dekker for Tomado, 1960s Mid-Century Armchairs from ISA Bergamo, Set of 2 Vintage Coffee Table by K.Kozelka and A. Kropacek for Ceske Umelecke Dilny, 1944
Danish Teak & Black Leather Ottoman, 1960s Teak Sideboard from Musterring, 1960s Mid-Century Danish Leather Sofas, Set of 2 Howard Sofa from Lenygon & Morant, 1950s Mid-Century Model FB06 Armchair by Cees Braakman for UMS Pastoe French Plush Chair from Pelfran, 1950s Sculptural Organic Dutch Lounge Chairs, 1960s Teak Side Table with Inset Tiles by Johannes Andersen for CF Christensen, 1960s Mid-Century Italian Garden Chair Oak Chest of Drawers, 1960s American Mahogany Armchairs, 1940s, Set of 3 Large Round Solid Teak Table, 1960s Teak and Rattan Chairs by Karl-Erik Ekselius for JOC Vetlanda, Set of 2 Serving Trolley with Casters, 1970s Scandinavian G-Plan Sideboard, 1960s Small Mid-Century Sideboard from G-Plan Mid-Century Industrial Children's Table by Willy Van Der Meeren Tall Bed Stands by Johannes Andersen for CFC Silkeborg, Set of 2, 1960s Vintage Wooden Bar Cabinet, 1960s Easy Chairs by Lucian Ercolani for Ercol, Set of 2
Vintage Pyramid Compass Table by Wim Rietveld for Ahrend de Cirkel EB02 Plywood Desk by Cees Braakman for Pastoe, 1952 Vintage Falcon Chair by Sigurd Ressell for Vatne Møbler Vintage Danish Design Oak Armchairs, Set of 2 Party Sofa by Edward Wormley for Dunbar, 1954 Mid-Century Faux Bamboo Coffee Table, 1950s Model EMT0030 Chairs from Thonet, 1961, Set of 4 Mid-Century Light Ocher LAX Armchair by Charles & Ray Eames for Herman Miller Mid-Century Teak Shelf by Nisse Strinning for String Dining Chairs from Tatra, 1960s, Set of 3 Mid-Century Leather Gym Pommel Horse Bench, 1950s Long Low Rosewood Commode by Arne Vodder for N.C. Mobler, 1960s Vintage Cocktail Chair by Theo Ruth for Artifort, 1950s Vintage Foam, Fabric and Metal Armchairs, Set of 2 Mid-Century Vintage Lotus Easy Chair by Rob Parry for Gelderland Vintage Italian Sculptural Armchair, 1950s Mid-Century Rosewood Vesper Sideboard from Gimson & Slater
High-Backed Dining Chairs by Leslie Dandy for G-Plan, 1970s, Set of 4 H- 269 Chairs by Jindrich Halabala for Thonet, 1930s, Set of 2 Teak Lounge Chairs by Arne Vodder for Slagelse Møbelværk, 1950s, Set of 2 Mid-Century Italian Metal Side Table German Cherry Table, 1950s Czech Armchairs, 1950s, Set of 2 Mid-Century Mademoiselle Lounge Chair by Ilmari Tapiovaara for Asko Model 4752 Typewriter Desk by George Nelson for Herman Miller, 1950s CB06 Birch Plywood Wardrobes by Cees Braakman for Pastoe, 1952, Set of 2 Mid-Century Dining Table by Eero Saarinen for Knoll J39 Chairs by Borge Mogensen for FDB Mobler, 1960s, Set of 6 Belgian Chrome and Glass Coffee Table, 1970s DS-85 Leather 2-Seater Sofa from de Sede, 1970s Vintage Oak Lounge Chair by Aksel Bender Madsen for Bovenkamp White Patinated Iron Chairs by Gilbert Poillerat, 1950s, Set of 2 Two-Seater Coronado Sofa by Tobia Scarpa for B&B Italia, 1970s Vintage Sofa with Folding Function, 1950s