Their groundbreaking furniture designs, which have remained current throughout the decades since their creation, play a central role in the eames oeuvre. Charles and ray eames are counted among the most important figures of twentiethcentury design. Charles and ray eames made life better by design their. This is the first comprehensive book on the eames legacy in over a decade. Charles eames 190778 and ray eames 191288 gave shape to americas twentieth century. In my opinion it does some cover lesser known history about the eames such as the. The world of charles and ray eames rizzoli new york. Early in their careers together, charles and ray identified the need for affordable, yet highquality furniture for the average consumerfurniture that could serve a variety of uses. Search the history of over 424 billion web pages on the internet. Nov 30, 2017 the husbandandwife team of charles and ray eames became famous for their furniture, textiles, industrial designs, and practical, economical residential architecture. Eames storage units esu exemplify charles and rays effort to design and produce economical household furniture using industrial production techniques. Chair designed by charles eames and eero saarinen for the organic design in home furnishings competition, designed 1940, molded plywood, wood, foam rubber, and fabric. The world of charles and ray eames charts the history of their inspiring and prolific world and brings together key works and ideas explored at the eames office throughout its. Arlene francis, host of nbcs home show, introduced charles and ray to television audiences in 1956, along with their iconic design lounge chair and ottoman.
Official site of charles and ray eames eames office. They are best known for their groundbreaking contributions to architecture, furniture design e. This is the first comprehensive book on the eames legacy in over a decade, revealing the rich totality of the their work in all media. They also worked in education, making public exhibitions on science and technology topics, sometimes in partnership with ibm. The story of eames furniture by maria popova charles and ray eames are among the most influential american designers in history, whose contributions to modernist architecture and furniture, as well as graphic design, fine art and film, shaped the american aesthetic for decades to come. About the author the story of eames furniture was written and designed by marilyn neuhart together with her husband john.
Learning at home join us each week for eames videos. The eames aluminum group was a collection of office furniture designed by charles and ray, and released in 1958. Early in their careers together, charles and ray identified the need for affordable, yet highquality furniture for the average consumer furniture that could serve a variety of uses. Nov, 2015 the world of charles and ray eames incorporates the breadth of their influence, opening with the plywood nose cone they designed for a military aircraft during world war two, and recreating. Louis, missouri, charles eames as a young man worked for engineers and manufacturers, anticipating his lifelong interest in mechanics. Now available again, this lavish publication tells the story of eames furniture in unparalleled detail on 800 pages with more than 2,500 images. From a small workshop in venice, california, the eames office designed and developed some of the most iconic furniture in the history of modern design. Both have worked with the eames office in various capacities from the 1950s until 1978, the year of charles eames s death. The couple met at the cranbrook academy of art in michigan, coming to the world of design from two pathshe was a trained architect and she was a trained painter and sculptor.
They have looked after the house of charles and ray eames since the designers deaths and have supervised the eames. As charles noted about the molded plywood chair, yes, it was a flash of inspiration a kind of 30year flash. A book about the relative size of things in the universe and the effect of adding another zero by philip morrison, phylis morrison, office of charles and ray eames and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Charles eames has 21 books on goodreads with 689 ratings. The most iconic item from the collection is the task chair, a classic office desk chair originally created with a mesh suspension back for outdoor use and adapted for the office. Raybernice alexandra kaiser eames, nee kaiser december 15, 1912 august 21, 1988, was an american artist, designer, and filmmaker. Charles eames designed movie sets, and the eameses did research in the uses of plywood, continuing when, in 1943, charles became director of research and development for the west coast operations of the evans products company. It was designed and constructed in 1949 by husbandandwife charles and ray eames to serve as their home and studio. They are officially titled eames lounge 670 and ottoman 671 and were released in 1956 after years of development by designers. Eames office scholars walk furniture history scholars walk.
The resulting highly sculptural yet functional, modular device could be massproduced and conveniently transported. Their lives and work represented the nations defining movements. Alongside newly commissioned texts by leading design experts, the world of charles and ray eames includes contemporaneous. Charles eames biography childhood, life achievements. The world of charles and ray eames charts the history of their inspiring and prolific world and brings together key works and ideas explored at the eames office throughout its extraordinary history. The war years had reenforced charles long held belief that the strengthened plywood could be something, and so it would be proven. Charles eames early struggles with the molded plywood technology were all but consigned to history following years of great effort and research, not to mention collaborative expertise from colleagues and peers. The first one is told in unparalleled detail on 800 pages with more than 2,500 images at the the story of eames furniture book by gestalten and the second one is told in 16. Charles eames, who was also an architect, was for several years head of the experimental design department at cranbrook academy of art, bloomfield hills, michigan. Charles eames, ray eames lounge chair and ottoman 1956. She and her husband have allowed us to see furniture as not only functional, but beautiful. In creative partnership with his spouse ray kaiser eames he was responsible for groundbreaking contributions in the field of architecture, furniture design, industrial design, manufacturing and the photographic arts.
Architecture eames primer by eames demetrios eames design book case study houses 19451962 view all. In 1948, the museum of modern art announced the international competition for lowcost furniture design to commission and challenge the best design brains in the world. When you own an eames product made by vitra, you know it is an original. Choose from 120 authentic charles and ray eames office chairs and desk chairs for sale on 1stdibs. Charles eames furniture, from the design collection, by the museum of modern art, new york. California design includes 350 images, most in color, of furniture. Explore all seating created by charles and ray eames. Ray kaiser, born in sacramento, california, demonstrated her fascination with the abstract qualities of ordinary objects early on. Recognizing the need, charles eames said, is the primary condition for design. Charles eames was an american designer, architect and film maker.
Charles and ray eames are arguably the greatest furniture designers of all time. Charles and ray eames tables 69 for sale at 1stdibs. History changing her palette modern classics eames primer by eames demetrios view all. Combining imagination and thought, art and science, charles and ray eames created some of the most influential expressions of 20thcentury design furniture that. Charles and ray eames, perhaps the most famous design partnership of twentiethcentury america, did pioneering work in furniture, film, architecture, and exhibition design. Discover the illustrious repertoire of charles and ray eames, from furniture to. The eames office llc is dedicated to communicating, preserving and extending the work of designers charles and ray eames. They also wrote books, made motion pictures, and designed exhibitions, fabrics, and industrial and consumer products. The world of charles and ray eames catalogue history books. Produced in close collaboration with eames estate, this novel publication presents the husbandandwife team from both personal and professional perspectives, as well as the lively interplay of their public and private lives. During that time 193941 he collaborated with the architectdesigner eero saarinen on various design projects, one of which was a. The husband and wife team are best known for their groundbreaking contributions to architecture, furniture design, industrial design and manufacturing, and the photographic art. Now pat kirkham interprets their work in depth, probing the lives behind the designs and the nature of the collaboration.
History quotes architecture design catalogs case study. No american furniture designer is so well documented and celebrated as charles eames. The oeuvre of the american designer couple charles and ray eames is extraordinary in its range and diversity. Brimming with more than 2,500 images and insider information, this twovolume book in a slipcase sheds new. For the most part, these are disconnected commentaries and histories, told from outside the office walls. The world of charles and ray eames by catherine ince. The husbandandwife team charles and ray eames started their eponymous studio a little more than 75 years ago. The couple who shaped the way we live charles and ray eames were two of the most influential designers of the 20th century. In creative partnership with her spouse charles eames and the eames office she was responsible for groundbreaking contributions in the field of architecture, furniture design, industrial design, manufacturing and the photographic arts.
The story of eames furniture was written and designed by marilyn neuhart together with her husband john. In her later years ray also functioned as the chief archivist of their legacy and collaborated on a number of books about eames design. Feb 02, 2017 italianborn furniture and jewelry designer bertoia made significantyet underrecognizedcontributions to the famous eames chair while working for charles and ray. Choose from 69 authentic charles and ray eames tables for sale on 1stdibs. Charles and ray eames office chairs desk 120 for sale at. Charles and ray eames designed furniture, buildings, toys, films, graphics. Frequently photographed in matching clothes, poses, or both, each brought a rich array of talents to. They also worked in education, making public exhibitions on science and technology. Marilyn and john neuhart have absorbed their stories and meticulously portrays the history and development of eames furniture.
Their work spans the fields of furniture design, filmmaking, photography and exhibition design. Seating eames molded plastic armchair 4leg base eames lounge chair and ottoman eames molded plywood dining chair metal base view all. Frustrated, he left california for pennsylvania in 1950 to work for florence knoll who he had met a decade earlier at cranbook academy of art and her husband hans. Out of respect for charles s wishes, no book on them was published during their lifetime. Design changing her palette modern classics eames primer by eames demetrios view all. Charles completed two years of study at washington university in st. Eames chair history charles and ray eames chair design. Courtesy of vitra design museum f02 plywood tends to splinter when bent into acute angles.
My favorite section was on the worldwide midcentury modern movement and specifically, ray and charles eames. They also worked in the fields of industrial and graphic design, fine art, and film. There have been many books about the eameses, but this one is different on two counts. Charles 19071978 and ray 19121988 eames are among the most important designers of the 20th century, and the story of the eames office is that of visual and material culture in the postwar, modern period. Among their most recognized designs is the eames lounge chair. Among midcentury furniture designersthat is, those working from the 1940s to 60s and even into the 70sthe unofficial king and queen of that era are charles and ray eames, the californiabased husbandandwife team. Charles eames and ray eames american designers britannica. This book is beautifully designed with an embossed cover and great images. A book reveals that the famous 20thcentury furniture designers work. The eames lounge chair and ottoman are furnishings made of molded plywood and leather, designed by charles and ray eames for the herman miller furniture company. Her creativity and productivity were so intertwined with that of her partner, it hardly seems a coincidence that she passed away on the same day as charles exactly ten years later. His architecture and exhibition designs earned him. Case study eames design book case study houses 19451962 birth of the cool view all.
Charles and ray eames made life better by design their home was no exception. Katherine kaisun chia, architectural record charles and ray eames, perhaps the most famous design partnership of twentiethcentury america, did pioneering work in furniture, film, architecture, and exhibition design. The world of franklin and jefferson book posted may 18, 2014. This system of lightweight, modular storage cabinets and desks is constructed of plywood, lacquered masonite, and chromeplated steel framing. He even dabbled in history, designing the world of franklin and jefferson in 1975. Charles eames 19071978 and ray kaiser eames 19121988 were a creative couple renown for their furniture design and architecture, as well as textiles, photography, and film. This books reads like a history of visual design for the later half of the 20th century. Both have worked at the eames office in various capacities since the 1950s. Eames molded fiberglass side chairs charles and ray eames, 1950. The legendary design team charles and ray eames made films, houses, books and classic midcentury modern furniture.
Husband and wife team charles 19071978 and ray 19121988 eames played a major role in the world of modern architecture and furniture, as well as working in industrial and graphic design, fine art, and film. Charles eames worked with his wife from the time they were married, but they also knew eames furniture needed more than two good heads, so they hired henry beer and richard foy, among others. The husbandandwife team of charles and ray eames became famous for their furniture, textiles, industrial designs, and practical, economical residential architecture. Thoroughly researched by marilyn neuhart together with her husband john, who both worked with the eames office in various capacities from the 1950s until 1978, the story of eames furniture is an insiders account of the workings of the eames office from its founding 1943 and its closing in 1988. Charles eames and ray eames, american designers best known for the beauty, comfort, elegance, and delicacy of their massproducible furniture. Now back in print, this groundbreaking book remains the most complete catalog of their studio ever produced, examining in considerable depth every projectmore than 200 in allproduced by the eameses and their. They have looked after the house of charles and ray eames since the designers deaths and have supervised the eames archive. Explore all furniture created by charles and ray eames.
Rays influence on current interior design trends is unmistakeable. The world of charles and ray eames beaumaris books new. Nov 17, 2010 there are two ways to learn the eames story. The concepts they created, the radical materials they pioneered, and the enduring furniture they built have all withstood the test of time, and are on display in museums as often as they are for sale. Functioning decoration furniture exhibitions film, multimedia, and multiscreen presentations originally published. Dec 06, 2011 charles and ray eames headed the most creative design office in post world war ii america. Charles and ray eames are considered the most influential designers of the 20th century. This is the first work ive consulted that describes their films in detail. Eames design is the definitive study of the work of the extraordinarily prolific husbandandwife team whose creative imprint revolutionized the look of postwar american society. It was the first chair that the eameses designed for.
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