The story behind two of the most iconic 20th century figures began at Cranbrook Acadamy Of Arts in 1940. Charles was the new Head Of Industrial Design at the academy, whilst Ray was a new student eager to learn everything to know about design and construction. Where the two met is impossible to say, but they soon fell for one another and began their student-teacher love affair. Although Charles was married, their affair continued until their feelings for one another deepened; Charles filed for divorce, and on June 20th 1941, Charles Eames and Ray Kaiser were married, and the husband and wife team were soon to rock the world.
Beginnings in ply-wood
In 1941, Charles and Ray moved to Los Angeles. Ray began creating cover designs for California Arts and Architecture, whilst Charles worked in the film industry. Although both working separate careers, they continued their experiments with moulded plywood. Seeing the potential of plywood with its strong yet flexible form, Charles invented the Kazam! machine to help with production; unfortunately the machine didn't produce satisfactory results and they were back to square one. Their persistence eventually paid off and they received a contract from the U.S. Navy to develop lightweight, mass-produced leg splints for injured servicemen, as well as various components for air crafts. The access to the military’s technology and materials was the key component to their successful creation of moulded plywood products. Over 5000 units were ordered by the U.S. navy annually, and according to the BBC, around 150,000 were manufactured throughout World War II. The success of the ply wood leg splint allowed Charles Eames to quit his day job and begin focusing on his next plywood project.
From splints to seats
With the technological process for moulding plywood finally resolved, Charles and Ray applied the method to the design of domestic furniture. After a long process of testing, the first product manufactured was the ECW (Eames Chair Wood). The chair’s seat and back were gently curved to comfortably accommodate the human body and the chair was produced by Herman Miller of Zeeland, Michigan, and marketed as a multi-functional, yet affordable chair suitable for all modern houses. The Eameses went on to expand their product line to include moulded plywood dining chairs, tables, child’s toys and storage units and in 1945–46 the LCW was (Lounge Chair Wood) was designed. Their experimental approach to materials continued through the years. It culminated with the use of moulded fibreglass for a series of inexpensive shell chairs, a collapsible sofa, and a range of aluminium-framed furniture which was hugely popular, and still is today, where the designs have been adopted for both commercial and domestic use.
The dream house
In 1945, they designed their own Californian home as part of the case study program which was sponsored by Arts & Architecture magazine. The house took nearly 4 years to complete due to the shortage of vital materials and difficulty of obtaining steel, but on Christmas eve 1949, Charles and Ray Eames moved into their “dream house”. It was surrounded by 12 eucalyptus trees and despite being made from steel, glass and concrete, the organic design was in-evasive and actually complimented the landscape it was built in. The cleverly adaptable interior plan replaced the traditional fixed room arrangements and reflected the way the Eameses lived. The furnishings which the Eameses chose also reflected their interests and personalities from folk art to Native American pieces to modern abstract and textiles. The furniture comprised of their own designs, produced by Herman Miller, along with items they had purchased on their various trips abroad.
Second Prize in the International Competition for Low-Cost Furniture Design
In 1949 Charles and Ray’s next big breakthrough happened and they teamed up with the UCLA school of engineering to form a technology and design team to enter the New York Museum of Modern Arts “International Competition for Low-Cost Furniture Design”. The competition was well-received, and gained over 250 entries from the United States and more than 500 European entries. The design that Eameses and UCLA entered was the fibreglass collection which included an armchair, a dining chair and La Chaisse. The submission by The Eames Office and UCLA of the collection gained huge praise and was awarded second prize in the seating units of the category of the competition.
Despite already having achieved so much this is only the first part of their amazing story together. Read the final part of their amazing journey here.
I’m James Broad, a lover of all things vintage and Co-founder of Intique, a marketplace with personality selling vintage and antique furniture with character.
