Eames Power Couple

Ray and Charles Eames Screening Notes:

• Charles & Ray Eames were driven by curiosity
• Introduced people to look at the world differently
• Charles an architect and designer (dropped out of architecture school)
• famous for post-war furniture designs
• Ray (wife) was originally a painter; she worked along side Charles

• Charles' career began with the design of the Eames chair
• Won best of show in contest
• made of molded plywood
• Though considered a failure at first due to its impossibility to reproduce
• Charles and Ray search for answer to make it mass-producable, inexpensive
• they focus on the design of the mechanics of the chair rather than the design
• Created the "kazaam" which was a homemade machine used for the molding process of the chair

• The Eames' created splints for wounded warriors in WWII, used the splints design technique to reinvent the Eames chair.
• new splint design acted as inspiration to another chair design attempt
• more openings, not as solid
• composed of plywood
• icon of modernism
• Charles and Ray design line of plywood furniture
• "the best for the most for the least"
• very successful
• Herman Miller Furniture Company:
• "Wanted to make the best for the most for the least" was the mindset of Charles, who sold his furniture through Herman Miller
• Became one of the most profitable organizations in the wake of WWII
• Charles depended on Ray's aesthetic genius:
• Ray was more artistic minded
• Charles depended on her aesthetic skills
• Eames House excellent example of 20th Century modern architecture:
• Charles and Sarreinman designed their house 
• Ended up redesigning based on factors created by meadow
• Known as the Bridge House
• Open, uncluttered spaces, full of natural light; interior decorated with everyday objects in unusual ways (paintings suspended from ceiling, etc.); all aspects of the home a canvas in which the Eames' took full advantage
• Eames films:
• Depicts beauty of everyday objects
• Film was viewed as a tool, not as art during this time
• Forget Me Not: propaganda film shown to Russian population during Cold War era
• Forget-me-nots a universal symbol of friendship
• Most famous film: Powers of Ten
• Moscow Show set them apart as more than just furniture designers
• Charles and Ray died ten years apart after solidifying their roles as pioneers of the Information era
• Unified beauty that reached a broad audience 
• Ray also became known as one of the most influential women of design
• ground breaking - women had stood behind their husbands, not in front like Ray