Resources
Charles and Ray Eames often created variations of their chair designs by combining one seat shell with different base frames.
From the very begining the Plywood Group was available with a chromed tubular steel base frame, which lent the chair a lighter look and contrasting materials made the appearance all the more exciting.
Alongside models with no upholstery, the Eameses also designed versions with cowhide or leather upholstery. The covers rest on a thin wedge of foam to provide additional comfort. As part of the Vitra Home Collection, the LCMs with calfskin or leather covers are now available again for the first time in decades. DCM (Dining Chair Metal), LCM (Lounge Chair Metal) Seat and backrest in moulded plywood; natural or stained black, mounted on base using shock mounts (rubber/metal elements).
LCM is also available in calfskin or leather. Chrome-plated tubular steel four-star base attached by ball and socket. Glides available for either hard or soft floors.
Charles & Ray Eames
From 1941 to 1943, Charles and Ray Eames designed and developed stretchers and leg splints made of moulded plywood, and in 1946 they exhibited their experimental moulded plywood furniture at the New York Museum of Modern Art. The Herman Miller Company in Zeeland, Michigan, subsequently began to produce the Eameses' furniture designs. Charles and Ray participated in the 1948 'Low-Cost Furniture' competition at MoMA, and they built the Eames House in 1949 as their own private residence. Around 1955 they began to focus more on their extensive work as photographers and filmmakers, and in 1964 Charles received an honorary doctoral degree from the Pratt Institute in New York.
The Eames Office designed the IBM Pavilion for the 1964-65 World's Fair in New York, and the year 1969 offered the opportunity to participate in the exhibition 'Qu'est-ce que le design?' at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris. In 1970-71, Charles was appointed as the Charles Eliot Norton Professor of Poetry at Harvard University. MoMA again presented an exhibition of the Eameses' work, entitled 'Furniture by Charles Eames', in 1973. Charles Eames died in St. Louis in 1978; Ray's death followed in 1988.
Charles and Ray Eames have had a profound and lasting influence on Vitra. The company's activity as a furniture manufacturer began in 1957 with the production of their designs. Yet it is not just the products of Charles and Ray Eames that have left their mark on Vitra. Even today, their design philosophy continues to profoundly shape the company's values, orientation and goals.
Swiss manufacturer Vitra’s collections of furniture and lighting bring together the colour, culture and sophistication of the world’s most prominent designers.