Charles Eames and Ray Eames were the embodiment of the inventiveness, energy and optimism at the heart of mid-century modern American design, and have been recognized as the most influential designers of the 20th century. The Eameses were lovers of folk craft who had a genius for making highly original chairs, tables, case pieces and other furniture using traditional materials and forms.
As furniture designers, filmmakers, artists, textile and graphic designers and even toy and puzzle makers, the Eameses were a visionary and effective force for the notion that design should be an agent of positive change. They are the happy, ever-curious, ever-adventurous faces of modernism.
Charles Eames (1907–78) studied architecture and industrial design. Ray Eames (née Beatrice Alexandra Kaiser, 1912–88) was an artist, who studied under the Abstract Expressionist painter Hans Hofmann. They met in 1940 at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in suburban Detroit (the legendary institution where Charles also met his frequent collaborator Eero Saarinen and the artist and designer Harry Bertoia) and married the next year.
His technical skills and her artistic flair were wonderfully complementary. They moved to Los Angeles in 1941, where Charles worked on set design for MGM. In the evenings at their apartment, they experimented with molded plywood using a handmade heat-and-pressurization device they called the “Kazam!” machine. The next year, they won a contract from the U.S. Navy for lightweight plywood leg splints for wounded servicemen — vintage Eames splints are coveted collectibles today; more so those that Ray used to make sculptures.
The Navy contract allowed Charles to open a professional studio, and the attention-grabbing plywood furniture the firm produced prompted George Nelson, the director of design of the furniture-maker Herman Miller Inc., to enlist Charles and (by association, if not by contract) Ray in 1946. Some of the first Eames items to emerge from Herman Miller are now classics: the Eames chair, the LCW, or Lounge Chair Wood, and the DCM, or Dining Chair Metal, supported by tubular steel.
The Eameses eagerly embraced new technology and materials, and one of their peculiar talents was to imbue their supremely modern design with references to folk traditions.
Their Wire chair group of the 1950s, for example, was inspired by basket weaving techniques. The populist notion of “good design for all” drove their molded fiberglass chair series that same decade, and also produced the organic-form, ever-delightful La Chaise. In 1956 the Eames lounge chair and ottoman appeared — the supremely comfortable plywood-base-and-leather-upholstery creation that will likely live in homes as long as there are people with good taste and sense.
Charles Eames once said, “The role of the designer is that of a very good, thoughtful host anticipating the needs of his guests.” For very good collectors and thoughtful interior designers, a piece of design by the Eameses, the closer produced to original conception the better, is almost de rigueur — for its beauty and comfort, and not least as a tribute to the creative legacy and enduring influence of Charles and Ray Eames.
The original Eames furniture for sale on 1stDibs includes chairs, tables, case pieces and other items.
Eames Leg Splint In Original Paper Wrapper Evans Products Co. Birch Plywood 1943
By Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Monrovia, CA
Charles Eames Leg Splint In Original Paper Wrapper Evans Products Company And Is Sealed. 1 Splint Designed by Charles And Ray Eames For The N...
Wood, Birch, Paper
Eames Leg Splint In Original Paper Wrapper Evans Products Co. Birch Plywood 1943
By Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Monrovia, CA
Charles Eames Leg Splint In Original Paper Wrapper Evans Products Company And Is Sealed. 1 Splint Designed by Charles And Ray Eames For The N...
Wood, Birch, Paper
Classic Modernist Charles and Ray Eames Arm Shell Lounge Chair, Zenith
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames, Zenith
Located in Buffalo, NY
First generation, circa 1950 Charles and Ray Eames. Museum quality, sea foam green arm shell lounge chair made by Zenith Plastic Co./ Herman Miller. Features amazing exposed fibers, ...
Zinc
Vintage Eames Flag from the 1964 Worlds Fair for IBM
By Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Salt Lake City, UT
Very rare Eames flag from the 1964 World's Fair in Queens, NY. These flags were designed to sit atop the pavilions Eames Office designed for IBM. Only two pavilions are known to exis...
Enamel, Steel
Eames Leg Splint In Original Paper Wrapper Evans Products Co. Birch Plywood 1943
By Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Monrovia, CA
1 Leg Splint In Original Paper Wrapper, Evans Products Co., And Is Sealed. 1 Leg Splint Designed For The Navy, For The United States Of America, Made Of Birch Plywood In 1943. Stock...
Wood, Birch, Paper
$9,500
H 3.25 in Dm 3.25 in
Charles O. Perry Bronze Mace Sculpture Shell Sphericon MIT Geometric Duchamp Arp
By Charles O. Perry
Located in Hyattsville, MD
Charles O. Perry for the Centro Duchamp in Bologna, Italy, 1970. The piece is approximately 3 ¼” x 3 ¼” inches in cast bronze with a subtle patina. Stamped “CENTRO DUCHAMP” ton one c...
Bronze
Spanish, 1850s Fair Carousel Wooden Dog
Located in Marbella, ES
Spanish, vintage hand painted wooden dog with stuck out tongue, from an old fair ground Carousel.
Wood
$2,960Sale Price / set|35% Off
H 14.63 in W 11.38 in D 13.5 in
Three Lions From The Afrika Series Designed By Lisa Larson For Gustavsberg
Located in Doraville, GA
Three lions in varying sizes designed by noted designer and ceramicist Lisa Larson. The lions are from the Afrika series, designed in 1964. The set consists of a mini, large and giga...
Ceramic
$4,800
H 26.75 in W 22.25 in D 24.5 in
Classic First Year Production Eames LCW, Evans Label 5 2 5 Screw Configuration
By Herman Miller, Evans Products Company, Charles Eames
Located in Buffalo, NY
One of the nicest examples I ve owned in quite a while, stunning figured birch plywood, circa early 1946-1947, L C W (Lounge chair wood) designed by Charles and Ray Eames, Manufactur...
Birch, Plywood
Vintage 1960s Porcelain Ducks Candy Dish from the USA
Located in Delray Beach, FL
Beautiful candy dish made of porcelain of ducks back to back each other in a circle, vive details on a Snow White color yellow and green some fading in the Center due to age. Sign i...
Porcelain
Vintage Chinese Wicker Horned Animal From the Shanghai Collection
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Standout vintage Chinese horned animal with a removable lid ambitiously handcrafted in woven reed or wicker with carved wood highlights. From the famed Shanghai Collection.
Wicker, Reed, Wood
$1,100Sale Price|24% Off
H 0.2 in Dm 4 in
"Momento of the 1893 World's Fair, " Bronze Relief w/ American Indian Motif
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Superbly sculpted and highly detailed, this very fine bronze relief dated 1892 -- designed by Lodovico Pogliaghi and sculpted by Angelo Cappuccio for Stefano Johnson in Milan -- depi...
Bronze
$220Sale Price|20% Off
H 4 in W 2 in D 3 in
Art Deco 1939 New York Worlds Fair Collectible Salt & Pepper Shakers
Located in San Diego, CA
A unique and rare Art Deco salt & peppershakers from the 1939 New York Worlds fair great deign highly collectible piece.
Plastic
$5,600Sale Price|22% Off
H 15.5 in Dm 38 in
Paul Evans Brutalist Cocktail Table in Patinated Steel and Bronze, c. 1970
By Directional, Paul Evans
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This exceptional Brutalist coffee table by Paul Evans, created as part of his celebrated Sculptured Metal Collection for Directional, exemplifies the raw artistry and architectural p...
Bronze, Steel
$8,580
H 32.68 in W 26.38 in D 63.78 in
Original Sculpture / Seat Mod Up7 Designed by Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
By Gaetano Pesce
Located in Ibiza, Spain
The large seat/sculpture mod. Up7, designed by the renowned Italian architect and designer Gaetano Pesce in 1969, represents a milestone in contemporary furniture design. Produced by B&B Italia as part of the UP series...
Plastic
Thomas Francois Cartier (1879-1943): Tiger
By Thomas Francois-Cartier
Located in Nagykovácsi, Central Hungary
Thomas François Cartier, born on January 3, 1879, in Marseille, France, and passing away on December 27, 1943, was a notable French sculptor celebrated for his masterful depictions o...
Marble, Bronze
Vintage Surrealist Crystal Sculpture of a Hand Holding the World Globe
Located in Hudson, NY
This heavy and impressive crystal art object made mid-1950s is cast and then carved and engraved. The considerable amount of technical skill required shows a master at his craft. The hand created first then set with the globe second and after cooling the engraved longitude and latitude lines, continents and islands engraved creating the whole. Unsigned but completely worked by hand the piece is simple and dramatic without being overwhelming. It shows a considerable amount of wear on the ground smooth pontil but otherwise is in perfect condition. Condition Disclosure: While we do our best to carefully inspect and give a full report on the condition of any item we sell, pointing out any repairs or alterations that may had been done to the best of our knowledge, as is the case with any antique and vintage item, there is a possibility that at some point in the life of the piece that there may have been damage which has been professionally repaired and as such a repair undetectable it is therefore impossible for us to disclose... we recommend that you also read the 1st dibs user agreement...
Crystal
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H 42 in W 8 in D 4 in
Charles and Ray Eames Molded Plywood Leg Splint for Evans in Original Wrapper
By Charles and Ray Eames, Evans Products Company
Located in Chicago, IL
These leg splints were designed by Charles and Ray Eames and produced for the United States Navy by the Evans Products Company, molded plywood division. They're still in their origin...
Plywood
Sold
H 42 in W 8 in D 4 in
Charles and Ray Eames Molded Plywood Leg Splint for Evans in Original Wrapper
By Charles and Ray Eames, Evans Products Company
Located in Chicago, IL
These leg splints were designed by Charles and Ray Eames and produced for the United States Navy by the Evans Products Company, molded plywood division. They're still in their origin...
Plywood
Sold
H 42 in W 8 in D 4 in
Charles and Ray Eames Molded Plywood Leg Splint for Evans in Original Wrapper
By Charles and Ray Eames, Evans Products Company
Located in Chicago, IL
These leg splints were designed by Charles and Ray Eames and produced for the United States Navy by the Evans Products Company, molded plywood division. They're still in their origin...
Plywood
Eames Molded Plywood Splint
By Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Centreville, VA
Eames Molded Plywood Splint At the end of 1941 a physician friend from St. Louis who was stationed in nerby San Diego came to visit the Eameses ...
Plywood
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H 42 in W 8 in D 4 in
Charles & Ray Eames Leg Splint Evans Products 1943 Original Evans Product Label
By Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Monrovia, CA
CHARLES EAMES LEG SPLINT EVANS PRODUCTS 1943. Charles Eames Leg Splint In Original Paper Wrapper Evans Products Company Eames Birch Plywood Leg Splint 1943 Charles Ray Eames Mid Century Modern. Evans Products Molded Plywood Leg Splint 1943. Authentic Charles Eames Leg Splint Of Birch Plywood For Transportation. Charles And Ray Eames Design. 1 Vintage 1943 CHARLES EAMES SPLINT Leg Plywood For Transportation In Original Paper Wrapping With Original Vintage EVANS Products Label. Never Been Unwrapped. WW2 Leg Splint For The United States Navy. Charles and Ray Eames Leg Splint...
Wood
Mid-Century Modern Charles & Ray Eames Wood Leg Splint Sculpture 1940s
By Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Keego Harbor, MI
For your consideration is this rare Charles & Ray Eames sculptural leg splint, designed for the US Navy, this iconic sculpture was crafted using birch and molded plywood. Dimensions:...
Wood
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H 42 in W 8 in D 4 in
Charles and Ray Eames Molded Plywood Leg Splint for Evans in Original Wrapper
By Charles and Ray Eames, Evans Products Company
Located in Chicago, IL
These leg splints were designed by Charles and Ray Eames and produced for the United States Navy by the Evans Products Company, molded plywood division. They're still in their origin...
Plywood
Sold
H 42 in W 8 in D 4 in
Charles and Ray Eames Molded Plywood Leg Splint for Evans with Mahogany Veneer
By Charles and Ray Eames, Evans Products Company
Located in Chicago, IL
These leg splints were designed by Charles and Ray Eames and produced for the United States Navy by the Evans Products Company, molded plywood division. This one is still in its orig...
Plywood
Sold
H 42 in W 8 in D 4 in
Charles and Ray Eames Molded Plywood Leg Splint for Evans in Original Wrapper
By Charles and Ray Eames, Evans Products Company
Located in Chicago, IL
These leg splints were designed by Charles and Ray Eames and produced for the United States Navy by the Evans Products Company, molded plywood division. They're still in their origin...
Plywood
Sold
H 68 in W 58 in D 6 in
Charles and Ray Eames Plywood Folding Screen / Divider, , F S 6, , , Herman Miller
By Charles and Ray Eames, Herman Miller
Located in Buffalo, NY
Stunning vintage plywood divider by Charles and Ray Eames, for Herman Miller. Model “FSW-6” (folding screen wood) was designed and released to market in 1946. Consists of six adjusta...
Fabric, Plywood
Vintage Plywood Screen or Divider by Charles and Ray Eames
By Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Round Rock, TX
Stunning vintage plywood divider by Charles and Ray Eames, for Herman Miller. Model “FSW-6” (folding screen wood) was designed and released to market in ...
Canvas, Wood, Ash
Sold
H 42 in W 8 in D 4 in
Charles and Ray Eames Molded Plywood Leg Splint for Evans in Original Wrapper
By Evans Products Company, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Chicago, IL
These leg splints were designed by Charles and Ray Eames and produced for the United States Navy by the Evans Products Company, molded plywood division. They're still in their origin...
Plywood