GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Charles and Bernice Alexandra “Ray” Eames (nee Kaiser) pioneered the use of modern materials and technology in furniture and architecture. Charles Eames was born in St. Louis, Missouri. As a student at George Washington University, he studied architecture and later worked as a draughtsman. Ray Kaiser, born in Sacramento, California, studied painting. She was a founding member of the group, American Abstract Artists. The two met while Charles was completing a fellowship at Cranbrook Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan where Ray was studying art. They married in 1941 and shared a creative collaboration that lasted the rest of their lives.
Throughout their collaborative partnership, the two sought to create new designs that were multifunctional, ergonomic, and beautiful. After developing the Kazam! Machine for molding plywood in 1941, Charles Eames received a government contract to manufacture airplane parts and leg splints for servicemen injured in World War II. When the war was over, Charles and Ray Eames used the techniques to build plywood furniture which could comfortably accommodate the human body. Many of their designs are still in production today. Charles Eames once said of his plywood work, “The idea was to do a piece of furniture that would be simple and yet comfortable. It would be a chair on which mass production would not have anything but a positive influence; it would have in its appearance the essence of the method that produced it. It would have an inherent rightness about it, and it would be produced by people working in a dignified way. That sounds a little pompous, but at the time it was a perfectly legitimate thing to strive for.”
The Eameses later created furniture from a number of other modern materials like molded plastic, foam, artificial leather, and molded polyester. In addition to their architecture and furniture, Charles and Ray Eames also made children’s toys, films, and they designed industrial equipment. Charles Eames died in 1978, and Ray Eames died in 1988.
Adapted from
DMA unpublished material.
NOTES
Fair use photograph available:
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WEB RESOURCES
Library of Congress~Learn more about Charles and Ray Eames's evolution of design through this special exhibition.
The Met~Read more about the Eames's influence on mid-century American design.
Radio Interview~Listen to Pulitzer Prize-winning author Louis "Studs" Terkel interview Charles Eames.
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General Description
Charles and Bernice Alexandra “Ray” Eames (nee Kaiser) pioneered the use of modern materials and technology in furniture and architecture. Charles Eames was born in St. Louis, Missouri. As a student at George Washington University, he studied architecture and later worked as a draughtsman. Ray Kaiser, born in Sacramento, California, studied painting. She was a founding member of the group, American Abstract Artists. The two met while Charles was completing a fellowship at Cranbrook Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan where Ray was studying art. They married in 1941 and shared a creative collaboration that lasted the rest of their lives.
Throughout their collaborative partnership, the two sought to create new designs that were multifunctional, ergonomic, and beautiful. After developing the Kazam! Machine for molding plywood in 1941, Charles Eames received a government contract to manufacture airplane parts and leg splints for servicemen injured in World War II. When the war was over, Charles and Ray Eames used the techniques to build plywood furniture which could comfortably accommodate the human body. Many of their designs are still in production today. Charles Eames once said of his plywood work, “The idea was to do a piece of furniture that would be simple and yet comfortable. It would be a chair on which mass production would not have anything but a positive influence; it would have in its appearance the essence of the method that produced it. It would have an inherent rightness about it, and it would be produced by people working in a dignified way. That sounds a little pompous, but at the time it was a perfectly legitimate thing to strive for.”
The Eameses later created furniture from a number of other modern materials like molded plastic, foam, artificial leather, and molded polyester. In addition to their architecture and furniture, Charles and Ray Eames also made children’s toys, films, and they designed industrial equipment. Charles Eames died in 1978, and Ray Eames died in 1988.
Adapted from
DMA unpublished material.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
Library of Congress~Learn more about Charles and Ray Eames's evolution of design through this special exhibition.
The Met~Read more about the Eames's influence on mid-century American design.
Radio Interview~Listen to Pulitzer Prize-winning author Louis "Studs" Terkel interview Charles Eames.
Notes
source file
artists_and_designers-0168.xml.nores